Persona 3 Portable: Ad Infinitum
by Gones
Summary: The World is a fragile thing. Everything is manipulated through the twisting threads of fate and time, but sometimes, a Fool goes against it.  P3/P Fic. Hamuko centric.
1. A Priori

**A/n: **I am a very weak person.

I feel terrible for starting _[P3P: The World of Ours]_ in mid-story. Why? Don't ask. I was planning to finish it up, and begin writing up a take on Minato's side of the story, or _[P3P: The World IS Ours]_, but I decided against finishing it up, and have put off writing for an extremely long time due to personal matters I'd rather not say. So, I decided it would be better if you saw what led up to the events, rather than me having them happen out of the blue.

I hope it'll be more to your liking. You'll find that there are things not in the original storyline that I am very intent on keeping. Minato's appearance, as well as others from the Persona Series. Cameos, yaaaay...

...Anyway, that is all. I'm sorry to keep you waiting. Constructive criticism is nice. So are reviews. .-.

* * *

_Prologue_

_

* * *

_

_?_

In the recesses of the night, in a place long forgotten by humans, a figure looked down upon the new world silently. It was something he could not touch; it was something he had to give up for the price of his sins. The price for saving everything he held dear. Even so, he could not touch it. There was a space between the man and the new world, as so naturally there would be. If anyone remembered him or the place he resided, that would only spell disaster.

Yet, he chose this path of his own free will. Ultimately, eternal damnation was his punishment. He was to be forever alone in a ruined world, all thanks to a deity he had fought and defeated in his past. This man did what he needed to in order to save the future he held so highly in regard, but never could he taste it, such as Moses would never be admitted into Canaan.

A flick of a lighter rang out through the empty, wrecked city which he resided in. The only sign of human life was himself. There was no need for him to do anything anymore. He no longer knew hunger or thirst, nor time for that matter. Forever, he was to remain trapped in oblivion. As the man flicked the lighter again, an apparition of a blue butterfly appeared to him, before taking the guise of a man with a butterfly mask. He didn't bother to look at the masked man, for he knew his presence well.

There was only silence between the two.

"You know," The newcomer said. "if you forfeit your memories again, you can join your friends."

"I know."

"But why don't you?"

"...This is my punishment, remember?" The man sighed bitterly. "And besides... I can't forget. I don't want to either."

Again, there was another bout of silence.

"You do know... that _she_ is still searching for you, correct? Of course, her task will always be futile, because you are always out of reach."

This surprised the man. Frowning, he turned towards the masked man. "I thought you stole all their memories."

"Stole is a harsh word. I merely sealed those memories away. But in the end, she asked me to do that one favor, and allow her to retain her memories." He murmured, gazing out to the new world. "She knows full well that it's impossible. Yet she searches. It's one of the many mysteries behind humans... knowing that some situations are hopeless, no matter what is done."

It took a while for the man to come up with an answer. "That didn't stop us from stopping _him _the first and second time." He replied. "We humans are stubborn. No matter the odds, somehow, we'll overcome them." Giving a side-glance, the man frowned. "Gods and demons don't decide human fate, Philemon. Humans have a quality that demons, angels, even what gods lack. You're still trying to find out that secret, aren't you?" Glaring now, the man straightened. "I thought you learned that fact back when my friends and I defeated _him_."

"I'm merely an observer." Philemon answered as he produced a butterfly, one half red, the other half blue. "You've been reduced to that state as well."

His eyes narrowed. "...What are you plotting?"

"Your words are harsh. But your assumptions are understandable..." He said as the butterfly split into two, holding the pieces up for the man to see. "I am doing as I've always done; I'm giving humanity the necessary power to combat what's to come."

"...Playing god again, are you?"

"Your words wound me. You know what I am; I need not explain to you why I hand out _that_ power to those select few. You hold that very same power yourself."

"...I thought by defeating Nyarlathotep, everything would be saved."

"Do not be mistaken. Nyarlathotep is not behind this."

"...What?"

Philemon ignored him. "Humanity... has been failing my expectations out of late. The psyche they pride themselves on is deteriorating... their mindsets are pitiable at most. At their current state, they call death to themselves."

"What!"

Philemon again ignored him. With a wave of his hand, two portals opened before him: one of a boy, another of a girl. Polar opposites they would be called. The boy had blue hair and gray eyes, the girl had auburn hair and red eyes. The man stared wonderingly at them both.

"These two, are twins. Three years ago it has been since they lost one another in each other's respective realities. Fate has been unkind to them." Philemon explained. "They have lost everything, but that only leaves them with the potential to possess everything. I wish to see what direction these two take..."

With that, Philemon dropped the halves of the butterfly into their respective portals; the blue half going to the boy, and the red half going to the girl.

"Did you just give the power of Persona to children?" He asked in disbelief, remembering painful memories flashing into his mind.

"No. I merely amplified it. I have given the 'potential' to others. These twins you see before you, created their own Personae without my involvement. Unlike yourself, they lack a means to bring it out."

"Is that even possible? For someone to create their own personae?"

"I did not foresee this either. Normally it takes time for a fully developed Persona to emerge from the human soul." Philemon admitted. "Humans have brought the upcoming crisis upon themselves... and I wish to see the same vigor in them that you and your friends once had. Be thankful Nyarlathotep is not involving himself in this affair."

"Tch... I wouldn't say that. That bastard's unpredictable." He said scornfully. "But no matter what happens, I believe that humans will overcome anything you outer gods try to pull."

"All examples I have seen have proved this. If this generation of Persona users fail, your sacrifice for 'This Side' will be for naught." Philemon closed his eyes. "Those... 'Wild Cards' will be the deciding factor."

"It's cruel to pin everything on them. But... Everything has a beginning _and_ an end. There are ends we don't want, but they're inevitable, and we must face them. It's what being human is all about. They'll overcome fate in one form, or another." The man replied brusquely as he flicked his lighter once more. "I know that to be a fact."

"Your punishment certainly speaks for itself."

"Tch."

Both man and outer god stared down at the new world for a time, until the latter broke the silence once more.

"What say we make a friendly bet, Tatsuya Suo?"


	2. Awake in the Night

_When I'm alone, I look out into empty space and wonder about things. Sometimes, I wonder about you._

_

* * *

_

**Burn... my dread...**

The refrain stung her ears, yet an auburn-haired girl with unnaturally red eyes listened avidly as she boarded the Anehazuru passenger train. She stared out the window into the dusk of night, spying the Moonlight Bridge's outline on the horizon. Her father, mother, and brother died in a car crash on that very bridge, leaving her all alone since all those years ago.

For a moment, while she stared at the moonlit surface of the water, a blue butterfly fluttered in front of the train window. It effortlessly kept up the train, as it glided over the ocean; the girl gawked, never once taking her eyes off of the butterfly. Words burned themselves into her mind as she stared...

_Time never waits._

_It delivers all equally to the same end._

_You, who wish to safeguard the future,_

_However limited it may be..._

_You will be given one year;_

_Go forth without falter,_

_With your heart as your guide..._

She girl began rubbing her eyes, blinking several times to see that the butterfly was nowhere in sight. Glancing around the train to see if anyone else had perceived it, the announcer's voice rang out through the intercom.

"Due to a malfunction in the switching system, today's rail schedule has been greatly altered. We apologize to any passengers who were in a hurry. The next stop is Iwatodai..."

Deciding to ignore it, she shook her head several times to regain her sense of feeling. Griping a nearby handle for support, she maintained her balance as the train steadily slowed to a stop. She ignored the rest of the announcements as she stepped back onto solid ground, and glanced around the interior of the train station with the blank look. She peered at the clock overhead on the beam, she saw it was seconds away from midnight. She held her breath.

Darkness fell as the second hand struck the clock.

The walls began bleeding, the lights shut off, people became encased in coffin-like figures as the moon shone with an indolent, murky green moonlight. Her MP3 player fell dead quiet, adding to the stillness of the night.

"…Here too." She whispered, despite there was no one 'awake' to hear her.

Glancing around one final time, she let out a quiet breath and began walking, with her bag bouncing against her thigh. In the time of Midnight, or Darkness as she called it, she had never encountered another person. When she was younger, she preferred to hide under the covers until it had passed. No one that she lived with understood what she meant when she told them about it. No one except her uncle who lived Mikage-cho believed her, for some odd reason.

She sighed fretfully, and continued trudging along the blood-drenched streets. Coffins were scattered haphazardly where she walked. The moon loomed eerily over head, illuminating all with dank light. Yet, she did not stop for nothing. She was afraid of the shadows that loomed on every corner; shadows that looked... almost alive.

She continued walking through the bloodied streets of Iwatodai, unfaltering despite her festering dread.

* * *

She, was Hamuko Arisato.

She was a auburn-haired girl of seventeen, with unnaturally red eyes and a cheerful disposition. She was somewhat of an outcast due to her unseemly foreign appearance, yet when approached by others, she welcomed them.

A good listener, she was called. She blamed it on the fact that she didn't like interrupting people, or rather because she had always wanted to hear what they had to say. She liked to talk, but she never said more than needed. Of course, she didn't exactly know what to say all the time either. She was sentimental towards others; more empathetic than most people, actually.

She always put others before herself. But despite this, she always had a feel of emptiness around her. Sadness. Any friends she made, she lost when she moved away to another side of the country. Despite any promises of 'meeting up again', inevitably, she was always let down. This year, she believed, would be as all the others had been. She was used to it by now. Calmly, she continued walking through the blood-drenched streets while glancing every so often at the map she had been provided.

* * *

Finally, she arrived at her destination. Walking up the steps, Hamuko tried the door. Surprisingly, it opened without any resistance, as if inviting her to go inside. Which she did. The lights were on for once, she noticed. Which was uncanny because normally anything electronic shut itself off. Hamuko gently placed her bag on the floor as she glanced around the dimly lit dorm.

"You're late." A voice shattered the silence she was all too accustomed to. Turning to the side, she saw a young boy leaning behind the counter to her left. He looked about seven or so, maybe ten if she was mistaken, and had shining blue eyes; eyes almost as dark as the night itself.

Wait. Someone else other than herself was awake?

"I've been waiting a long time for you."

The boy's smile was a thin line on his face. Snapping his fingers, he suddenly shifted to the spot in front of her. If it weren't for Hamuko's blind amazement, she would've asked how he had done that. The boy motioned to the counter he had left, and pointed out a thin red book that clearly stood out. Hamuko blinked.

"If you want to proceed... sign your name there."

She walked towards the book wonderingly as the booklet opened itself up, and revealed its contents to the auburn-haired girl. "It's a contract." The boy continued to say. "Don't worry; all it says is that you'll take full responsibility for your actions." By this point, Hamuko didn't know what to think of the situation.

"You know, The usual stuff..."

Wonderingly, Hamuko stared at the single line that decorated the contract.

"I, Hamuko Arisato, give my word that I will accept and take the full responsibilities and consequences of my actions."

The boy stared at her expectantly. Hamuko blinked only once, before decidedly signing her name on the contract. It was simple; it stated its purpose and the terms to the agreement, but what was she signing for in the first place? Didn't her relatives say that they already took care of the necessary paperwork for moving to the dorm? In any case, with an apathetic look, she passed the contract over to the boy. His eyes never moved from her until she did; being just 'freaked out' by this kid would be a heavy understatement.

"No one can escape time," The boy explained in a perfectly nonchalant manner as he pulled the booklet close to his chest. "It delivers us all to the same end…" He held the contract to his face and continued, "You can't plug your ears and cover your eyes." And just like that, he turned the book sideways, returning it into nothingness with ease. For the first time, she saw the boy close his eyes.

The boy made a gesture to reach out for her as the shadows on the walls began enveloping the room. As they grew closer, the lights dimmed, and eventually faded. He melted against that shadows of the room, disappearing completely from view.

"And so... it begins..."

The darkness came abruptly as the boy left. Staring the spot he had vanished, Hamuko stared at it in a daze of some kind. That is until, another voice rang out an nearly gave her a heart attack.

"Who's there!"

A pretty brunette wearing a pink sweater came running down from the stairs situated at the end of the room. She glared at Hamuko for a moment before gasping, "How can you be... But it's...!"

Just as Hamuko was about to ask if she was referring to 'Darkness', the brunette pulled out a gun from the holster on her thigh which Hamuko had failed to notice. The brunette pointed it downwards, both cautiously and clumsily. Hamuko accessed the girl standing before her.

She was shaking.

She looked terrified.

She was hyperventilating, too.

Her expression screamed that she didn't know how to use that thing.

Gulping, Hamuko took a step towards her.

"D-Don't come near me!" The brunette stuttered as she lifted the gun higher, still trembling.

At this point, Hamuko was sure that someone would end up badly hurt. Whether it was bravery or sheer stupidity, she decided to make another move, one that hopefully would stop the girl from doing anything. She raised her hands ever so slowly.

"Uhh, sorry?"

No sooner than she said that, the brunette swung the gun upward. Hamuko jerked back, hoping she would dodge any bullets that the girl fired.

"Takeba! Wait!"

Thankfully, they never came. A new voice broke out, and someone came running from upstairs. At the same time, without anything to stop her, Hamuko fell back towards the carpeted floor. Seconds later her head slammed down against the bag she had dropped earlier; it didn't do a very good job of cushioning her fall.

Hamuko landed against the floor with a loud thud.

"...Oww." She groaned.

"Are you all right?" The new voice asked her. Dizzily, Hamuko opened her eyes to see a hand out and waiting in front of her for her to take it. Hamuko gratefully took the person's hand and hoisted herself back up to her feet.

The lights were on again. After shaking her head a couple of times to snap out of her stupor, she saw the owner of the voice who had averted what might have been a crisis.

The voice belonged to another girl.

She was beautiful; much more pretty than herself. Her long maroon hair fell over her shoulders and curled at the back; fringe covered her left eye and a loose curl over her left shoulder. She wore a ruffled blouse and long skirt that accented her curves. An air of elegance covered her graciously, as if it were natural to her. She was struck Hamuko as someone who was queenly. Hamuko figured it was time to make a lasting impression. Or at least to try and salvage what was left of one.

"Are you all right?" The red head reiterated.

Hamuko nodded vigorously. "I'm fine. Thank you for helping me up."

"You're welcome." The red head nodded, while turning her gaze towards the girl in pink for a moment. Hastily, she hid the gun behind her back, and looked away. Hamuko stared wonderingly at the two before being addressed again. "I must say, I wasn't expecting you to arrive this late. I'm Mitsuru Kirijo, one of the students who live in this dorm."

"...Who's she?" The gun girl muttered with a wary look.

Just as Hamuko was about to open her mouth and speak, Mitsuru interrupted her.

"She's a transfer student. It was a last minute decision to assign her here." Mitsuru said, giving a side glance to the auburn-haired girl. "She'll eventually be moved to a room in the normal dorm."

_'I can't wait for that. Just what kind of dorm is this?' _Hamuko thought blankly.

The girl in pink was still eying her suspiciously. Hamuko stared back at her with deadpan eyes. "Sempai, is it okay for her to be here...?"

_'What's that supposed to mean? At least I don't go pointing guns at people…'_

"I guess we'll see." Mitsuru replied vaguely.

Hamuko looked back and forth between the two, before frowning slightly. _'Why are they pretending as if the last five minutes never happened? Something seems fishy.'_

"Oh." Mitsuru said suddenly. "You must be wondering who she is, aren't you?"

She sighed internally, and went along with it with a slight nod.

"This is Yukari Takeba; she'll be a junior this spring, just like you." She gesticulated to the girl in pink, who waved weakly.

"…Hi," She mumbled, looking down towards the floor. "I'm Yukari."

"I'm Hamuko Arisato. Nice to meet you, I guess." Hamuko made an elegant shrug of her shoulders before she twisted her lips into a frown.

Yukari blinked. "Uh... Is something wrong?"

"Why do you have a gun?" Hamuko blurted.

"Huh?" Yukari stuttered gawkily, making it quite clear to Hamuko that she wasn't expecting to be asked that. In fact, Yukari had twisted loose a pink thread from her pink blazer in her surprise. "Umm… Well, it's sort of like a hobby…"

Hamuko raised an eyebrow.

"Well, not exactly like a hobby… but…" She mumbled defensively. Yukari glanced at Mitsuru for support.

She obliged. "You know how it is these days; it's for self-defense." Hamuko gave her a skeptical look. Mitsuru paused before adding, "It's not a real gun, of course." Mitsuru then turned towards Hamuko in a business-like fashion. "It's getting late, so you should go get some rest. Your room is on the third floor at the end of the hallway. Your things should already be there as well."

"All right." Hamuko nodded as she knelt down to grab her bag.

"Oh, umm…" Yukari began to say quietly. She shot a quick look to Hamuko before gesturing to the stairs. "I'll show you the way. C'mon, follow me."

* * *

Hamuko quietly followed behind Yukari was she made her ascent up the stairs. It seemed like it took forever just to reach the third floor, due to the uncomfortable tension in the air. During this time, she wondered what life would be like here. It hadn't even been a full day, and she already had a gun pulled on her. Admittedly, she didn't want to be here. She didn't want to be at Iwatodai, period. It brought up painful memories she'd prefer to leave behind.

"This is it," Yukari said abruptly with a hint of awkwardness. She motioned to the door at the end of the hallway. "Pretty easy to remember, huh? Y'know, since it's right at the end of the hall." She laughed slightly at her little joke before continuing. "So, any questions?"

"What was the contract for?" Hamuko asked.

"Contract?" She blinked, clearly ingenuous with her words. "What's this about a contract?"

Hamuko slapped the side of her cheek. _Of __course __she __doesn__'__t __know__. __That __kid __made __it __disappear… __speaking __of __which__, __he __disappeared __too__. _

"Uh… are you okay?" Yukari asked concernedly.

"Yeah, sorry." Hamuko laughed nervously. "I just have a lot on my mind, to be honest."

"If you say so." She shrugged, before looking directly at Hamuko with an uncertain look. "…Um, can I ask you something?" Again, she averted her gaze to the side. "On your way here to the station, was everything okay?"

"…What do you mean?" Hamuko asked inquisitively.

"You know what I-" She nearly yelled, before stopping mid-sentence. "...Never mind." Yukari then sighed with relief, and smiled as though Hamuko had undergone some sort of perilous journey to arrive at the dorm. "It seems like you're all right."

Again, Hamuko shrugged. There was a long awkward pause.

"Well, I'd better get going…" Yukari shifted uncomfortably under Hamuko's gaze. The red-eyed girl curtly nodded before walking over to the door, patting her pockets for a key she had received earlier. At the same time, Yukari began walking down the hallway. As soon as she reached midway, the brunette turned around and gave her a side glance. "Um, I'm sure you have a lot of questions, but let's save them for later, all right?"

"All right." She murmured as she managed to open the door.

"Anyway… good night." Yukari flashed a quick smile before retreating down the hallway. Hamuko averted her attention to back to her own business, and for the first time went inside the room she would be calling 'home' for the year.

All of her things were packaged in boxes, and labeled respectively. Sighing, she walked passed them and collapsed onto the bed.

_There's plenty of time to un-box this stuff tomorrow… _She yawned. Blinking steadily, her vision began blackening was she faded off into restful slumber.

* * *

A/n: Well. I'm kinda surprised how not many people know about Persona 2. Of course, it wasn't released in North America, so it's still understandable. Speaking of which, I can't wait for the Persona 2: Innocent Sin Port for the PSP! It's coming out this year in Japan, and is hopefully getting released in the US this year. After ten years, it's about time they made it! Anyway, the fact that most of you don't know about Persona 2, that's an even better reason for me to restart the story. You'll learn a bit about Tatsuya and his friends, as well as what happened to them. Not to mention the other characters. I'm looking forward to this. :3

This is a multi-crossover, but it's more connected to the previous Persona games rather than the latest one. At this point in the story, it's too early to start anything just yet, so the story will proceed as usual. Onwards!


	3. Settling in

…_Time has passed quickly since that time. Can you already believe it's been ten years?_

* * *

A loud rap on the door woke Hamuko from her dreamless sleep. Groggily, she shifted up from the bed and stood up, remembering that she was staying at a dorm now. She glanced around drowsily, trying to find the source of the noise.

"It's Yukari. Are you awake yet?"

_Oh, the door… _

Rubbing her eyes, the auburn-haired girl precariously stepped over the boxes on that were scattered messily around the door. A couple seconds later, after nearly tripping, she opened the door and allowed Yukari to enter her room. The brunette was dressed in the same pink blazer and miniskirt as yesterday, excluding the gun. Hamuko on the other hand, had just noticed that she had fallen asleep while still wearing her school uniform. It the skirt was a bit wrinkly here and there, but hopefully, no one would notice.

"Good morning. Did you sleep okay?" The brunette greeted as she walked into Hamuko's room, glancing at the untouched cardboard boxes that littered her floor.

"Yeah." Hamuko nodded. She then turned her attention to the stack of boxes, and shrugged apologetically. "I haven't gotten a chance to unpack yet. Sorry for the mess."

"It's okay." Yukari giggled. "When you did arrive at the dorm, it _was_ pretty late…so…yeah." Yukari trailed off, giving Hamuko a quizzical look. "Will you need help unpacking later?"

"No worries, I'll be fine." Hamuko replied with a slight smile. "Anyway, what's up?"

"Oh, right." The brunette blinked, remembering her original reason for entering. "Mitsuru-sempai asked me to take you to school. You're all set, right?"

"Totally!"

"Okay." Yukari smiled. "Then let's go."

* * *

Hamuko and Yukari boarded the passenger train, Anehazuru. The train car was filled with other students, as well as other people dressed in suits and such.

"It's kind of strange, huh? Having to take the monorail to school." Yukari informed as she gazed beyond the train window. Hamuko followed the same suit, and peered out the window. The wide cerulean ocean greeted her as the monorail roared. "This is my favorite part; it feels like you're gliding over the ocean…" Yukari murmured dreamily. "We're going to Tatsumi Port Island, which is entirely man-made."

"It is?" Hamuko asked wonderingly.

"It's amazing, isn't it?" Yukari piped. "Our stop's Port Island Station, which is at the end of the line. From there, we walk." Yukari smiled brightly. "Our school's there; it's right in the middle of the island. Oh, over there! You can see it right now!"

Just as Yukari said that, the famed man-made island came into view, and the school shone in the presence of the morning sun. Hamuko gaped.

_Maybe this year won't be so bad after all._

* * *

Cherry blossoms littered the pavement while students riding on bikes passed by with a quick chime. The balmy morning was overcome with the chit chat of students as they walked towards the school with open gates. The school was absurdly huge, and much more impressive upfront. Hamuko shrank; she began walking at a slower pace, hoping to burn the scene into her memory.

"Well, this is it!" Yukari began to say as she stopped walking. The brunette then pivoted on her heel, turned towards the auburn-haired girl, and smiled gaily. "Welcome to Gekkoukan High! You're gonna love it here!"

Hamuko smiled vividly in response.

* * *

She and Yukari walked through the school gates together. The brunette took lead, and showed Hamuko to the shoe lockers.

"You'll be fine from here, right?" Yukari asked as she slipped off her brown loafers and exchanged them for a pair of slippers she extracted from the locker. Hamuko gave a quick nod. "Okay. You should go see your homeroom teacher first. The faculty office is right there to the left."

"Right to the left… got it." Hamuko nodded.

"…And that concludes the tour." Yukari said with a self-satisfied smile. "Do you have any questions before I go?"

She shook her head. "Nope, I'll be okay."

With another sigh, Yukari's expression quickly became insecure. "Hey…" She whispered furtively. "About last night… don't tell anyone what you saw, okay?" With quick breath, the brunette recomposed herself as she took a couple steps to the right. "See ya later."

Yukari retreated towards the other side of the school. Now alone, Hamuko made her way towards the faculty, somehow doubting that the bulletin board had her name due to her last minute transfer. But she looked anyway for good measure.

The chatter of other students distracted her.

There was a person in a track suit getting yelled at by a tan-skinned girl. Closer to the bulletin board, there were male and female students moping over the classes they had been placed into, particularly a boy with light brown hair and a girl with a long ponytail. Moving closer to the board, she glanced through the lists several times to finally find that her name was on a post-it underneath class Class F. Upon closer inspection, Yukari was in the same class.

She wasn't exactly sure if that was a good or bad thing. Shrugging to herself, she darted away towards the hallway that Yukari had pointed out earlier.

Just down the hall, there was a blonde guy with a fan talking to a… Teacher? Hamuko stared at the samurai helmet positioned on top of the middle-aged man's head that was incredibly out of place, even if it was a Japanese school. They were having an obviously enthusiastic conversation, so Hamuko decided to stay out of it. Further down the hall, there was a black-haired and dark-eyed girl glancing around, mumbling something about a library. Backtracking, she finally found the aforementioned teachers' lounge.

Taking a deep breath, Hamuko slid the door open and walked in.

* * *

A few moments after entering, a woman in a peach pink suit stood up and walked towards her.

"Oh, are you the new student? Hamuko Arisato?" She asked inquisitively, to which Hamuko gave a quick nod of her head. "Let's see, I have your file around here somewhere…" The teacher mumbled as she pulled out a slip of paper from atop a precariously positioned stack of paperwork. "Let's see… wow, you've been all over the country, haven't you?" She asked as she continued glancing through her notes. "And in 1999… what, that was ten years ago? Your family…"

Hamuko steeled herself for the typical reaction she usually got after people learned of her situation. The lady gasped, and turned looked back up at Hamuko with a sorry look.

"I'm sorry… I've been so busy that I haven't gotten the chance to read this beforehand." She began to say. "I'm Ms. Toriumi." She introduced herself. "I teach Composition; welcome to our school."

"I'm pleased to meet you." Hamuko said nonchalantly with a polite bow.

"My, aren't you polite? Girls like you should be an example for others." Ms. Toriumi smiled with an impressed look. "Have you seen the classroom assignments yet?"

Hamuko gave another nod.

"Then you should know that you're in 2-F; that's my class." She explained. "But first, we should go the auditorium. The Welcoming Ceremony will be starting soon… No, wait. Actually, you go on ahead."

"Huh?"

MS. Toriumi hefted a sigh before gesturing to the stack of papers on her desk. "I need to finish all this paperwork before Mr. Ekoda gets back. If you're wondering who he is, he's another teacher who works at this school. He's such a hotshot, just because he teaches Classic literature…"

"So he bosses around all the other teachers?" Hamuko asked curiously.

"No." She said immediately with a frown. "Never mind what I said." Ms. Toriumi waved her hand dismissively, while Hamuko turned towards the door. "Just get to the auditorium, all right? I'll see you later in class."

"Okay."

* * *

Upon leaving the teacher's lounge by herself, she noted that the Kabuto helmet-wearing teacher and blonde were no where to be seen. As she walked back into the main lobby, she slapped her hand against her forehead. She had forgotten to ask where the Auditorium was. Pivoting on her heel, Hamuko made a full 180 as she began backtracking towards the office when she bumped into something.

"Oh… pardon me." It was the dark haired, meek girl from earlier. She seemed startled by the sudden bump. The girl stared at Hamuko with a lenient look, as if expecting to be blamed.

"No worries, it's okay." Hamuko replied in a friendly manner, much to the other girl's surprise. Hamuko ignored it and continued. "If you don't mind me asking, can you tell me where the auditorium is?"

"The auditorium? I apologize… I have no idea…" She murmured wistfully. "I was hoping you could tell me."

"Oh. Does that mean you're a new student too?" Hamuko said inquisitively.

With a distant look in her eyes, the girl nodded inanely. "Yes. I'm Saori Hasegawa from class 2-C. I finally came back oversea studies."

"2-C? I'm Hamuko Arisato from 2-F; I had a last minute transfer and just got here yesterday. Oversea studies sound fun… whoops, getting off track here!" She said with an apologetic smile. "Anyway, it's nice to talk to someone in the same age and grade as I am though."

_Not counting Yukari. She still pulled a gun on me._

"…Ah."

"Huh? Did I say something wrong?" Hamuko blinked, giving the dark haired girl a questioning look.

"No… it's nothing." Saori mumbled quietly, darting her eyes to the floor. "…Let's go look for the auditorium, Arisato-san."

"No need to be so formal." Hamuko said grinningly. "Just call me Hamuko."

"But we just met…"

"And it's fine unless I say otherwise! C'mon, let's go Saori-san!" Hamuko beamed.

Saori sighed to herself resignedly before looking back at the auburn-haired girl with a slight smile. "Yes. We should hurry… it could start anytime, Hamuko-chan."

"'-chan'?"

"…Is it all right if I call you that?" She asked with an anxious gaze before staring down at her shoes. "I'm sorry if I offended yo-"

"Nope!" Hamuko interrupted. "That's perfectly fine in my book. Let's go!"

* * *

Hamuko and Saori had barely made it in time. After saying goodbye, they took their seats with their respective classes. The auburn-haired girl sat through most of the announcements, uninhibited by the tediousness of the principal's speech. He kept repeating lines constantly, consequently causing the majority of the student body to lose interest.

He was spouting uninteresting comparisons on proverbs and quotes, and speaking on how the students standing in the auditorium were talented for making it into such a prestigious school as Gekkoukan. Hamuko scoffed to herself.

Though, after a while her thoughts began straying from the principal's speech. She began thinking about the car crash all those years ago. They day her family perished. Her thoughts however, were scrambled. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't remember the details, or how it had happened in the first place. All she remembered was the wreckage of the car, the screech of the ambulance, and two dancing figures in the moonlight…

"Hey, did you hear that we've got a transfer student?"

The sudden chatter broke her train of thought. She began listening to the outside voices.

"Yep. I've seen her too. She came to school with Yukari." Were they talking about her?

"I hear talking." A smart-looking teacher walked closer to her class, glancing around stiffly. "I believe it's someone from Ms. Toriumi's class…"

"Shh! Be quiet!" Ms. Toriumi immediately came onto the scene, and into Hamuko's peripheral vision. "You're going to get me in trouble!"

Still, the rumors kept coming despite Ms. Toriumi's attempts to shut up the majority of the class. Hamuko decided to do herself a favor and keep her mouth shut until the school assembly ended.

After the assembly, Hamuko went to her classroom. Ms. Toriumi let the class representative and students decide their seating arrangements by numbering the desks and making the number choosing process random.

In the end, Hamuko was placed in a seat in the middle of the classroom. Not that she minded. Yukari, she noted, had the seat right in front of her. A cap-wearing boy groaned loudly as he made his way to his seat, which was just over to Hamuko's right side. More or less, the other students had no qualms with their seats.

Finally, Ms. Toriumi nodded to herself with a smile of complacency, and started the lecture.

* * *

School was over before she knew it. It wasn't exactly boring, but it wasn't too interesting either. She had found herself nodding off several times before the bell rang out, signifying the beginning of after school. Hamuko bent over the side of her desk and began packing her things away.

"'Sup, dude?"

Lifting her head up with a confused look, her gaze was met by the cap wearing boy from earlier.

"Haha, you look like a deer in the headlights." The boy chuckled.

Hamuko raised an eyebrow. "What do you want?"

"Oh, come on. Let me introduce myself, at least." Tilting his cap forward, he plastered a goofy grin on his face. "I'm Junpei Iori. Nice to meet ya."

"Nice to meet you too." Hamuko said with a friendlier look, much to the boy's delight. "I'm Hamuko Arisato."

"Haha, thanks." He grinned sheepishly. "Anyway, I transferred here when I was in the 8th grade. I know how tough it is bein' the new kid… So I thought I'd check up on you, make sure you weren't freaking out on your first day."

"At it again, huh?" A new voice cut in; it was unmistakably Yukari's. Turning her way, Hamuko could see that the brunette was exasperated from Junpei's antics. What did she have against him? "Honestly, is there any girl you wouldn't hit on?" Hamuko hadn't even noticed. "Did you ever think you might be bothering someone?"

"What? But I was just bein' friendly." Junpei protested.

Yukari rolled her eyes. "If you say so."

"Do you two know each other?" Hamuko asked curiously. Yukari made an elegant shrug of her shoulders.

"For the record, Yuka-tan and I have been in the same class before." Junpei answered.

"Would you stop calling me that?" Yukari grimaced, before looking over to Hamuko. "Anyway, some coincidence we're in the same homeroom, huh?"

"Yeah, I know." Hamuko replied.

Smiling, Yukari chuckled to herself. "Funny, huh?"

"Um, hello? Did you forget that I'm in this class too? C'mon, lemme in on the fun!" He gave an annoyed look before putting on a devious grin. "By the way, do you guys know each other? I heard you two came to school together this morning. A couple of cuties like you walking side by side… the whole class is buzzing about you."

"Ugh… could you just cut it out? I hate dealing with rumors like that." Yukari scowled at Junpei, before giving an uncertain side-glance to Hamuko. "I mean, I'm used to it, but she just got here, you know? Don't you feel bad, spreading rumors like that?"

"Jeez, calm down Yuka-tan. It's not like rumors actually come true…" Junpei groaned.

"Anyway." Yukari flat out ignored him. "I've gotta take care of some stuff for the archery team. Don't try anything funny, you got that Junpei?" Giving a menacing stare to the cap-wearing boy, the brunette retreated out of the classroom.

"…What is she, your nanny?" Junpei sighed exasperatedly before looking over to the side. "Well, just to clear something up, I seriously didn't come over here to hit on you or anything."

"Then why?"

"Why? Well…" Clearing his throat, Junpei stood tall and grinned. "If you ever have a problem, just tell your ol' pal Junpei about it!"

"I'll remember that." Hamuko smiled slightly at his antics. His grin only grew wider.

"Heh, cool. I'll be seeing you around, then."

And as it turned out, just a few minutes after that whole business, Junpei caught her walking out of the school. He somehow managed to persuade her to let him walk her home. Not that she minded.

"So, you live at a dorm?" He asked inquisitively.

"Yep. It's a pretty interesting place." Hamuko replied. She wasn't exactly lying, but she was keeping what happened to herself.

"Heh, that sounds pretty cool. Wish I could live at a dorm… it sure as hell beats living at my place…" Junpei mumbled absentmindedly. He inadvertently scowled, much to Hamuko's notice and worry. It faded a moment later after the track team ran past the both of them. The cap-wearing boy turned towards Hamuko and grinned. "Whoa, check out the jocks on their run… Oh, that reminds me. Did anyone tell you about the school clubs yet?" Hamuko shook her head. "Well, girls can join too, so why not do it if you're interested?"

Hamuko gave him a curious look. "What kind of club would you join, Junpei-kun?"

"'-kun'? Whoa, whoa, I'm not too into honorifics. Just stick to calling me Junpei, all right?" Junpei shrugged. Hamuko held up her hand, gesturing for a high-five. He gave it to her with another goofy grin. "You too, huh? Well, if there's any team I'd try joining, I'd say it'd be the baseball team."

"You like baseball?"

"Well, yeah." He shrugged. "I had a thing for it back when I was a kid. Anyway, if you decide to join any clubs, you'd be joining as a new member, so they won't let you apply for a little while."

"Gotcha." Hamuko nodded, as they walked out of the school together.

Junpei ended up walking with her until the dorm came into view.

"See ya tomorrow!" He yelled, making his way in the opposite direction. Hamuko frowned to herself as she watched his retreating back.

Judging by his pace, she could tell he wasn't in any rush to get home. Moreover, when he talked about going home, he wasn't exactly enthusiastic about it. It was the complete opposite, actually. She began walking after him, but stopped. She remembered that she still had to unpack her things… But what was more important? With a sigh, she ran after him.

She caught up to him, and excused herself by asking him to help her pick out a couple of things she still needed.

"What? Well why didn't you just say so earlier?" He groaned loudly, feigning false annoyance. Still, he grinned with delight a moment later as he tilted his cap forward. "Whatever. I know the perfect place to go. It's got just about everything, so why don't we go there?"

"Sounds good to me. And I'm sorry for bothering you, Junpei." She said quickly, with an apologetic smile.

"Nah, don't be." He said dismissively. "C'mon, let's go."

* * *

Junpei ended up taking her to the Paulownia Mall. As he said before, it really did have everything. Hamuko ended up getting assorted things Junpei thought she would need; whether she needed it or not, she would eventually find out.

As they walked through the mall, Junpei seemed to be having fun. He showed her the various stores, until they reached Power Records. It was a music store of sorts. When Junpei found out that she had a thing for J-Pop and J-Rock, they high-fived again, and began exchanging their musical preferences.

"Whoa. _This_ is what you listen to?" He said as he grabbed on of her headphones and held it up to his ear.

She gave a confused look. "What, is something wrong?"

"Nah." He shrugged, lifting his hand to his chin. "It sounds kinda… I dunno, too guy-ish for a girl?"

This irked her to some extent, but she got over it. "Then what do you suggest?" She asked quizzically.

"Hey, hey, I never said it was bad or anything…" He said as he began shuffling around the music rack. "I mean, Lotus Juice and Yumi Kawamura? They've got some pretty good tracks, but you strike me as someone who'd be more of a Mayumi fan. Y'know, Mayumi Fujita? Maybe Shuuhei, but that'd be stretching it. Huh." Finally, he pulled out a disk from the shelf and held it out to her with a playful grin. "Seriously, try it out. Think it of it as a recommendation from yours truly."

She ended up buying it. Pleased with his achievement, Junpei invited her for coffee at the café across the store. They sat and made small talk for a while, before leaving the mall and parting ways. As Hamuko waved him goodbye, she realized it was getting dark. Hurriedly, she began making her way back to the dorm.

* * *

It was already dark. As Hamuko let herself into the complex, she could have sworn she had broken the dorm's curfew. Thankfully, she hadn't.

"Welcome back." Mitsuru said, lifting her face out of her book out of politeness.

"Good evening." Hamuko murmured as she slipped off her loafers.

"…You must be tired." The red-head said calculatingly, sizing up Hamuko as she walked by. "Go get some sleep; you have school tomorrow."

"…Right. I just have to take care of some things first." Hamuko looked back and nodded slowly before beginning her slow lumber up the stairs.

As she walked, she nodded a grayish, white-haired boy walking down the stairs just as she was going up. On a positive note, he was rather good-looking and wore a confident, close to smug look on his face. He didn't seem to notice her as he went downstairs, so she continued her task.

When she finally made it to her room, she finally took the time to unpack and put away the items she had bought earlier today. By the time she was done, it was late; she was also tired from the day's activities. Changing into her pajamas, she pulled over her comforter over herself and fell into a deep slumber.


	4. Between A dream and Another

_A/n: _…Sorry if I'm boring you guys. My sans motivation has been getting the best of me.

* * *

**Now that I'm back in Iwatodai, I have a lot on my mind…**

**

* * *

**

_A younger version of herself stood out amidst the white background. Her stoic red gaze wasn't directed at anyone, due to a lack of other people. Her peach pink dress was partially wrinkled because she was clutching to it with her small hands. She looked ready to cry, but no such thing occurred. The girl stood still, merely staring into the emptiness of the white space._

_The 'real' Hamuko stood nearby in the background, staring at her eight-year old self._

_Echoing footsteps rang throughout the dreamscape. The setting began to change into a fuzzy blend of a park as a figure walked onto the scene. Hamuko was seated on a swing, rocking gently as the figure drew close. It was a man with a lean build; his hair was a deep blue, almost bordering a distinctive purple shade. The man looked no more than nineteen years of age. He spotted her sitting over on the swing set and walked over. He bent over, and looked at her eight year-old self from her eye level._

_"So this is where you've been, Hamu-chan?"_

_"Yes, uncle."_

_"You can call be by my first name if you want. I'm not that much older than you, you know." The man chuckled. "Hamu-chan, I heard my mom and dad talking about something the other day. They said that you liked to tell stories. Can you tell them to me?"_

_"…" _

_"…Did I say something wrong?"_

_She shook her head and gave an uneasy look to the man. "It's not a story. It happens when everyone goes to sleep. I told your mom and dad, but they didn't believe me. No one believes me." She said in a frustrated tone, balling up her small hands into fists. She obviously was expectant of some form of chiding from him._

_"I wouldn't say that." He said as he gave her a sympathizing look, much to her surprise._

_"You believe me?" She asked with a look of newfound admiration for the older boy. _

_"Yep. I've gone through my fair share of crazy that you wouldn't believe. Trust me on that one, Hamu-chan." He nodded with a disarming grin. "So, can you tell me about it?"_

_Hamuko awkwardly stared at her shoes, but answered after a minute. "…After everyone goes to sleep, the moon turns green and people turn into coffins. Like the ones mommy, daddy, and big bro were in. And there's this weird boy who asks me to play with him."_

_"You know, it's very bad for kids your age to be awake past the time adults go to sleep." He said half jokingly before putting on a darker expression. "So… while everyone's asleep in their… coffins… someone speaks to you?" He gave her a concerned look before pressing further. "Am I awake during all this? How long has this been going on?"_

_"Since they died." She answered in a dull voice before shaking her head, much to the man's dismay and growing concern. "That weird boy says that he's sorry for me. But I don't know why he would be."_

_"…Neither do I." He muttered breathlessly, shaking his head to himself. A few moments later, his eyes lit up with sudden elation. "Wait. I think I've got _just_ the thing."_

_"What is it, uncle?" She asked, tilting her head to the side._

_"Let's play a game, Hamu-chan."_

_"A game?"_

_"Don't worry, it's simple." He said encouragingly. "Y'see, after sis died, I promised myself I'd keep you safe… This'll protect you when I can't be there, since I can't look out for you all the time… Especially since our relatives aren't exactly happy with…" His voice trailed off as he nervously brought his hand over his face._

_She cocked her head once more, not quite understanding what her elder was getting to. He merely shook his head dismissively, before she asked, "What's the game called?"_

_"Hm? There's really no specific name for it." He said, taking a deep breath. "Now, Hamu-chan, repeat after me…"_

_

* * *

_

Hamuko's eyes slowly fluttered open, much to her slight dismay. The shrill ring of her alarm clock buzzed repeatedly, until she lazily slapped her hand against it. The auburn-haired girl was admittedly a morning person, granted she wasn't fatigued before she fell asleep. Sometimes the status carried over, sometimes it didn't. Today, was one of the cases where it hadn't. Hamuko hummed to herself the new songs that Junpei had recommended for her as she changed into her uniform. He was right; she absolutely _loved _it. The tune was upbeat and fantastically catchy. As she hummed, she stalked off into the dorm's kitchen on the first floor, and began making pancakes.

…_That dream I had… _She thought absentmindedly while she cooked. _I don't remember anything like that happening before. Did it happen? Or was it just a dream?_

Soon enough, a sweet, pungent scent hung over the lounge. Content with her mouth-watering handiwork, she carried a plate of fresh pancakes outside of the kitchen, still humming.

_If it did happen, then it undoubtedly happened while I was younger… but… how does it end? What did Uncle say to me?_ She twisted her lip into a pout when no answer came to her.

"Yukari, is that you?"

Hamuko found herself face to face with the gray-haired boy from yesterday. On a closer inspection, the boy had a lean build. His hair was indeed gray, almost bordering white. He had a bandage just above his left eye, but it wasn't really in the way of his charms. Yes, Hamuko admittedly thought he was attractive.

He was drawn by the smell of pancakes. The boy, realizing that she was not Yukari and that he was in her way, backed off a bit. He scratched his the back of his head awkwardly, before coming to terms with his blunder.

"…Sorry if I scared you." He said coolly, looking at Hamuko directly with his steel gray eyes.

"It's fine." She replied, while walking towards the counter.

"I haven't seen you around here before." The boy asked her blankly. "Are you new?"

_Great, I'm totally transparent…_

"I moved here about two days ago." Hamuko murmured, ignoring her previous thought as she placed the pancakes on the counter. She threw the boy a side-glance. "I'm Hamuko Arisato, a junior."

"I see." He nodded slightly. "I'm Akihiko Sanada, a senior."

Things got somewhat uncomfortable after they exchanged introductions. Akihiko hadn't said a word afterward. Hamuko assumed it was probably because he didn't know what to say. Was it because he didn't know what to say, or was he just socially awkward? Hamuko tilted her head somewhat as she glanced at the still warm pancakes. She shifted her gaze back to Akihiko. "…Uh… Do you want some?"

"Huh?" It was as if he had snapped out of a stupor of some sort. Hamuko smiled, stifling a giggle.

"Do you want some?" She reiterated. This time, it wasn't forced. "I don't think I can finish all these by myself." She wasn't exactly telling the truth. She had made that much knowing full well she could finish it all. Yet, Hamuko decided to offer some if it would relieve the situation of its awkwardness.

"Thanks." He embellished his gratitude by grabbing a plate out of the cupboard.

The two of them began to eat together, despite just meeting a few moments ago. Akihiko was much more talkative over food, Hamuko noted. As he talked, the auburn-haired girl listened intently, learning that Akihiko was the captain of the Gekkoukan's Boxing team, and that he lived on the dorm's second floor. He had lived there for as long as Mitsuru had, apparently.

"So you just came here about two days ago, huh…?" He asked, finally done eating his pancakes. He gave Hamuko a curious look before standing up from his seat. Hamuko tilted her head. Noticing that, the grey-haired boy shook his head dismissively. "No, it's nothing." Akihiko shot the girl a side glance as he turned towards the front door. "Thanks for breakfast, by the way."

He walked off without another word. Hamuko wasn't sure if the pain in her chest was the fluttering of her heart, or rumbling of her stomach. Either way, it in her mind it she concluded it was the latter. Looking down, she realized that she had barely touched her own food.

"Morning!" Yukari called out as she padded down the stairs.

"Good morning." Hamuko nodded, glazing her still warm pancakes with syrup as Yukari walked into view.

"Breakfast?" The brunette murmured aloud. Hamuko gave a quick nod of her head.

"Want some?" She offered, seeing that she somehow knew she wasn't going to get out of the situation with sacrificing a bit more of her breakfast. Much to her surprise, Yukari shook her head.

"Maybe some other time. I've gotta get going for club practice." Yukari mumbled half-heartedly, hinting that she would've enjoyed the offer. Instead, the brunette walked towards a toaster that Hamuko hadn't noticed before. She daintily inserted two slices of bread, and waited.

"You're in a club?" Hamuko asked inquisitively. Yukari gave a quick nod of her head.

"Yeah. I'm in the Archery Club." She replied absentmindedly. "If you didn't know, Mitsuru-senpai's the leader of Gekkoukan's Fencing Team, and Student Council President. Amazing, isn't she?" There was an ever so slight hint of scorn hidden within her words. Hamuko stared wondering at the girl as she continued eating. Did Yukari have something against Mitsuru? "Oh, are you thinking about joining a club?"

Hamuko nodded. "Eventually."

"Really." Yukari mumbled, jumping slightly with anticipation as lightly browned toast sprung from the toaster. Picking up the hot toast with a napkin, Yukari took a step towards the door. "Well, I don't really know what you like, but Gekkoukan's got a fencing team, a boxing team, a baseball team, a tennis team and a volleyball team, I think. Other than those, there's archery Club, a fashion club, an art club… I can't even remember them all. Not including the school committees either…" Yukari bit into her toast and chewed thoughtfully, before throwing a glance to Hamuko. "Anyway, if you're thinking about joining a club, you should go check it out for yourself."

_Does that include a gun club? _She thought as she munched on her pancakes. "That's what I plan on doing."

"Okay, cool." Yukari said with a mouthful of toast. Walking towards the exit, the brunette weakly waved her hand. "Anyway, I'm going to go now. See you later." With that, the brunette also left through the door, not bothering to wait for Hamuko to exchange a goodbye.

"…Bye." Hamuko mumbled feebly as the door slammed behind the pink swathed brunette.

No one else came downstairs, leaving Hamuko to guess that Mitsuru was already at school. She ate in the presence of no one, again wondering what kind of dorm her relatives had sent her to. Normally, dorms housed ten to fifteen students depending on its size, and so far, she had only run into three people.

_What's the deal with this place? _Hamuko thought as she swallowed the last bite of her pancakes. It had a bitter aftertaste, much to her dissatisfaction.

After cleaning up her mess and locking the front door, she proceeded towards school, alone.

* * *

The beginning of her day was uneventful, that was for certain. She ran into gossiping girls at the front gate who were exchanging rumors, and stayed awake through Ms. Toriumi's tedious lesson. Junpei was unfortunate to be called on while he was slept behind his textbook.

"Junpei! Hey, were you listening?" She barked. "Who did I say was my favorite author?"

"Uhh… " Junpei mumbled incoherently while he glanced around wildly, looking for a hint of some kind. Hamuko obliged. Writing the answer on a slip of paper, she nonchalantly slipped it to the side of her desk towards Junpei, who saw it immediately. "…It's Utsubo Kubota, right?"

"So you were listening to me after all!"

Junpei scratched his head with a sheepish grin plastered on his face. "Haha… Well, you do know how much I like to pay attention!"

"You sure don't show it."

"Harsh…" Junpei winced.

After Ms. Toriumi diverted her attention back to the white board, Junpei gave her a thumbs up. The two shared a quick grin before Hamuko turned her attention back to the lecture. In no time at all, the hours flew by. School was out before she knew it. As the majority of the class filed out the door, she found herself a straggler, alone in the empty classroom. Realizing that she had no one to hang out with, she decided to go back to the dorm. Of course, after she left the school, Hamuko realized something.

It was a beautiful afternoon.

Why waste the day just going home?

* * *

After an hour or two of walking around, Hamuko had finally found it, much to her bittersweet delight. Despite the fact she hadn't been to Tatsumi Port Island in years, she still managed to remember the way to the memorial park near the Moonlight Bridge. The park itself was nothing too fancy; it just had a couple of park benches facing towards the sea, with some well-tended flowers patches that were blooming gaily. It brought back memories; back then, the Bridge was newly completed and this park was erected nearby in honor of it. Now, the structure was weather-worn as she expected, yet it still retained its charms.

The park had a wonderful view; the ocean spread itself out to her as the sun shone over the horizon and the bridge's arched silhouette, showering world with golden daylight. The sea breeze tickled Hamuko's nostrils, slightly chilling her as she took a seat on an empty stone bench. She had forgotten how breathtaking the view was. The Moonlight Bridge… It was the place where her family perished ten years ago in some car accident. Or at least, that's what it seemed like.

_Where had all the time gone? _She thought. Hamuko remembered the day she lost her family, but how she lost them, she was not certain of. Her mother, Shizuka, and her father, Hayate were driving home that day. It was really late so she had been half-asleep; she was sitting in the back of the car with her older brother. Her older brother, or her fraternal twin, was only than her by a couple of minutes but that was all the difference it made. She affectionately called him her 'Onii-chan' because of it, which he didn't seem to mind. She was leaning on his shoulder, before everything went to hell.

Everything afterwards was a blur, but the undeniable truth was that he was gone, along with her mother and father. She missed them- she missed him the most. If he was still alive, he would've been in the same grade as her. Maybe if he was alive, she wouldn't be so lonely. Perhaps everything would've been different, but what did she know? Hamuko bounced her heels tentatively against the stone benches, with a deep an contemplative look etched onto her features.

"'Scuse me kiddo, but are you all right?"

Her train of thought shattered into pieces as she blinked her glazed eyes. Glancing up, Hamuko noticed a woman in her mid twenties, maybe her late twenties. She had jet black hair that draped over her shoulders and swathe blue suit, and a bright inquisitive expression.

"Good to see signs of life! For a moment I thought you were coming down with Apathy syndrome or something. You've been staring out towards the coast for a while." The woman remarked with a lighthearted smile. "Something on your mind?"

"I-It's nothing…!" Hamuko said quickly, obviously flustered at the stranger's sudden appearance. Just who was this lady? Why was she talking to her in the first place?

"It doesn't seem like 'nothing' to me." The woman grinned playfully. "Come on, girl. Spill it. Tell me what's got you looking so down!"

Hamuko blinked. "Eh?"

"Being coy because I'm a stranger, hmm?" She pouted, closing her eyes before moving her gaze towards the sea. "Well, it's a good thing for kids to be wary these days, but this is a good city, you know? It kind of reminds me of my hometown, although back in Sumaru they didn't have views as nice as this." The woman scratched her head with an apologetic smile, before looking back at the auburn-haired girl. "Sorry if I'm bugging you. It just rubs me the wrong way to see a kid your age looking so down."

So that explained it. Hamuko sighed. "Sorry. It's my first time coming here in years, and well, I guess I'm feeling a bit nostalgic." Hamuko explained obligingly. "Is that weird?"

"Not at all!" The woman exclaimed. "Though, it's surprising to see someone your age reminiscing. If you don't mind telling me, was it a good or bad memory?"

Hamuko's gaze fell to her shoes. "…Bad."

"Ouch." The woman winced before giving a sorry look. "Sorry for prying… but hey, you know what?" Before Hamuko could even reply, the woman continued. "Good or bad, a memory is a way of holding on to the things you love, or the things you never want to lose. With that in mind, does it seem so bad? Everyone's had their bad experiences, kiddo. Whether they seem 'bad' or not, it all depends on your view on things! Y'know what I'm saying?"

"Yeah." Hamuko looked back up towards the woman and smiled slightly. In response, the woman's grin only grew wider. She was obviously pleased with herself.

"Great! Look on the bright side of life, kiddo. If you spend all your time brooding about things you can't change, you'll never be able to move forward. Let's think positive!" After saying those words, the woman released a breathy gasp of air. With a satisfied look, the woman then nodded to herself.

"I'll keep that in mind." Hamuko replied with a smile.

"Good to hear." She grinned again before looking out towards the coast before uttering a small gasp. "Whoops! It's already getting dark. Sorry for taking up your time, kiddo. Let's talk elsewhere some other time."

"All righ-"

"Ciao~!" The woman ran off without another word, just as the sun began sinking below the horizon. Hamuko waved until she was out of sight, before realizing that she had never gotten the woman's name.

She shrugged to herself as the wind began picking up, and left towards the direction of the dorm.

* * *

"Oh, she's_ finally_ back." Yukari said as soon as she came walking through the door.

Was it just Hamuko's imagination, or was Yukari emphasizing the 'finally'? As she took off her shoes, Hamuko noticed a glasses-wearing man in a beige pea-breasted coat was sitting in the lounge.

"So, this is our new guest…" He said, sizing Hamuko up as Yukari beckoned her to come closer. As she did, the man took over and motioned for Hamuko to take a seat on one of the couches that decorated the lounge. As she took a seat, the man never took his stare off of her. Creepy, was the first word that came to her mind. "Good evening."

"Good evening." Hamuko replied. The man's mouth twisted into an lenient smile.

"You must be wondering who I am, aren't you? I'm Shuji Ikutsuki, the chairman of the board for your school." He professed, before chuckling slightly while he folded his arms. "…'Ikutsuki'. He repeated. "Hard to say, isn't it?"

"Not really." Hamuko answered truthfully. Whether he decided to ignore the remark or not, he continued.

"Nonetheless, it's why I don't like introducing myself. Even I get tongue-tied sometimes…" He murmured with an earnest gaze.

_That sounds like an excuse. _Hamuko shrugged to herself. "I'm Hamuko Arisato. Nice to meet you, Ikutsuki-san."

"I know all about you." He chuckled. Hamuko shifted uneasily in her seat. Was she supposed to laugh? "School files, you know. I am the chairman of the board… even if it isn't personally, I'm still supposed to read up on our student and their backgrounds. Nonetheless, it's nice to meet you too." Hamuko raised an eyebrow. Before continuing, Ikutsuki pushed up his glasses. "I apologize about the confusion regarding your accommodations. However, it may be a while before you receive a proper room assignment."

"But I didn't complain." Hamuko uttered with a slight hint of protest. More or less, she _slightly _enjoyed living here. No, rather, she didn't have a problem living here, even if it meant there was a gun club or something. _Maybe I'll get to watch something big happen if I stick around._

Straightening up, Ikutsuki smiled curiously. "That's good to hear. Nonetheless, is there something you'd like to ask?"

'Something' implied that she wanted to know something. Which also implied that he was hiding something. Hamuko gave him a blank look. Whether he was being curious or not, she was too busy noticing the hints of expectancy glimmering in the elder man's eyes. With a slightly annoyed look, the auburn-haired teenager shook her head. "No, it's fine."

"Really now?" Ikutsuki peered through his glasses. "Wouldn't you like to learn about the others who live here?"

"I'll meet them eventually."

"All in due time, I suppose. After all, time doesn't stand still." Ikutsuki chuckled. "How are you liking Tatsumi Port Island? Did anything happen?"

Was he expecting something to happen? Or was he referring to the time Yukari pulled a gun on her? "Nothing out of the ordinary." She answered hesitantly. Why in the world was he asking her all these questions? Did he want something from her?

Ikutsuki looked at Hamuko closely from where he sat, sporting a look of peculiar interest. His glasses shone in the bright lamplight, making them mask over his eyes completely. "Really? Nothing?"

"…" Annoyed, Hamuko crossed her legs and grumbled irately, "What kind of question is that?"

"Ah. Forgive me for my rudeness. That kind of just slipped out." Ikutsuki retreated, lifting his head back with an awkward look. "Anyhow, I'm sorry for keeping you. I hope you have a successful school year… but that aside, you must be tired from all the excitement. You should go to bed early."

"I think I'll do just that." _The sooner I get away from this guy, the better._

"As the say," Ikutsuki paused dramatically. "'Early bird catches the book worm'!"

Somewhere, Hamuko imagined a drum set falling off a cliff somewhere. Grimacing, she glanced at Yukari who was also making a face.

"Please forgive the bad pun, heh."

_Never. _Rubbing her forehead, Hamuko gingerly stood up and began walking towards the stairs. Yukari, who was cringing, managed to follow the same suit. The teen gave her a thoughtful look speaking up. "…You'll get used to his lame jokes. Eventually." She said conclusively.

Waving her hand dismissively, Hamuko shot the brunette a sneaky glance. "…I don't think so. Instead, I swear the next time he makes a pun like that, I'll throw something at him."

"But he _is_ the chairman… wouldn't you get in trouble for something like that?" Yukari chastised, before making an elegant shrug of her shoulders. "I don't really blame you though. Are you really going to bed?"

"Yeah." Hamuko yawned. "What about you?"

"Oh… I've gotta take care of some stuff first." She replied tentatively, turning her gaze over to a nearby chair. Hamuko frowned in response. From the way she said it, it seemed she was _definitely_ hiding something.

"Well, don't stay up too late, Takeba-san." She said finally before heading up the stairs towards her room. Yukari nodded before heading back to the lounge.

* * *

After going to bed with the unshakable paranoia that she was being watched, Hamuko didn't know what to think when her eyes opened effortlessly afterwards. She was greeted by the soft singing of a woman, and ephemeral flashing lights that stung her eyes.

Adjusting her eyes to the flashing lights, Hamuko gaped in amazement. She seemed to be in a giant, elevator-like room. The back wall was sealed off with a complex chain fence, with an ever-turning dial. Doors along the side of the room were covered in white sheets that fluttered at their edges. A simple, circular table laid innocently in the middle of the room in front of the person who seemed to be its master. Seated on an ornate, velvet blue loveseat was an old man with an inhumane appearance. His eyes bulged out of his sockets, and a Cheshire-like grin was stretched tautly on the old man's face. His balding, wispy white hair was brushed behind his point ears. With a breath, he began to speak.

"Welcome…" The old man's voice had an airy quality. His grin grew only wider as he stared unwaveringly at her. "Wecome… to the Velvet Room."


	5. Halcyon Day

"My name is Igor… I am _delighted_ to make your acquaintance."

He continued to speak, as the gentle rumbling of the elevator continued upwards. Hamuko ceased glancing around before finally fixing her gaze on the old man. "If you indeed wondering… this place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter…" He paused briefly, as if to add a dramatic effect. Hamuko really saw no point to it, due to the fact this was probably the weirdest dream she had ever had. Nonetheless, Igor continued his drawl. "Only those who have signed the contract can enter this place…"

With a wave of his hand, the red booklet she had found and signed the other night was innocently lying on the table. Her eyes widened in surprise. How did he know about it?

"Henceforth, you shall be welcome here in the Velvet Room." Igor's enigmatic smile matched up to his expectant stare. Hamuko suddenly wished she hadn't signed that contract. "You are destined to hone your unique ability, and you will require my help in order to do so."

"To do what?" She asked inquisitively with a curious look.

"…You will know when the time is right." Igor answered obligingly as his fingertips fluttered against each other. "I only ask one thing in return…" He paused briefly, taking a deep inhale. "…That you abide by the contract, and assume responsibility for the choices you make."

"Understandable." Hamuko murmured thoughtfully, even though she didn't quite understand the first part of his drawl. With a stare, the old man nodded at her once before waving his hand.

"Hold onto this…" A key of dark blue fell into her hand as she stared wonderingly at Igor. The old man's fingers fluttered against each other again. "There is still one more resident of this room, who unfortunately could not be present for your arrival. But I will make sure you two are properly introduced. Another time, perhaps."

"I'll look forward to it, I guess." Hamuko shrugged slightly, but smiled nonetheless. In return, the old man laughed at her, but not unkindly.

"'Til we meet again…"

* * *

**You know… I wonder what kind of person you would be.**

* * *

Hamuko opened her eyes blankly, as she shifted the seats and sat up in her bed. She glanced around absentmindedly before lifting her clenched hand from the blankets. Lying in her palm, was the ornate blue key she had received in the Velvet Room.

"…So it wasn't just a dream?" She murmured distractedly as she played with the key in her hand. Sighing, Hamuko glanced to her left and picked up her alarm clock to read that it was still rather early. With a smirk, she clenched her hand and jumped out of bed ecstatically.

"I get the feeling something good's going to happen today." She whistled cheerfully.

"Yo…" Junpei yawned as the two walked to the school gates together. He clearly did not share her enthusiasm. "Man, I'm so sleepy today."

"That's because you probably stayed up all night playing video games or something." Hamuko chirped in a sing song voice, much to the boy's chagrin.

"What, do you spy on me or something?" He grinned playfully as he thrust his arms upward in a stretch. "I'm seeing that you're enjoying those tracks I recommended… Maybe that's why you're so awake?"

"Maybe it's helping me stay awake. Maybe it's just because I'm a morning person." The auburn-haired girl shrugged. "Take your pick."

"If I said I envied you, I'd be lying." Junpei said with a defiant smirk. "Anyway, in times like these, it's best to sleep during class! Have you ever noticed how sometimes taking a nap in class makes you feel more refreshed than sleeping at home?"

"Nope. Though, I wouldn't put it past a _certain _slacker among us. You really shouldn't do that, you know?" Hamuko gently chided.

"Whaaaaaaaat? Why do you have to be so serious?" He mumbled exasperatedly, but he shrugged it off. "The feeling of being completely recharged is awesome… but I'm screwed later because I won't hear the lecture! You'll cover for me, won't you?"

"I'll think about it."

"What kind of answer is _that!_" Junpei asked as he poked her shoulder. "Oh wait, we have classic literature today… which means we're stuck with Mr. Nasty 'Ol Ekoda."

"He can't be that bad, right?" Hamuko asked hopefully, but the bell cut into their conversation. Both ran to class.

* * *

"Some people say that Classic Lit isn't relevant to everyday life, but oh, how they're wrong!" Mr. Ekoda snapped from across the room, causing a few students in the front to wince.

It hadn't been five minutes in, and Hamuko was already bored out of her mind. Glancing to her right, she noticed that Junpei had already fallen prey to sleep.

_'…If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.' _She thought as she laid her head gently on the desk. Within moments, she was already asleep.

* * *

"Haha! You totally fell asleep. What happened to that mighty speech on not falling asleep in class?"

"It wasn't a speech. Besides, I never said that I haven't done that before either."

"…" The capped boy looked upward to think about it. "…Aw crap, you're right. So, how's it sound to you that we both be failures together?"

"Uh, no. But feel free to ask me for help when you need it." Hamuko replied brightly.

"Wow… getting help from a girl sounds kinda…" Junpei's voice trailed off as he looked over to the side.

"Kinda what?" Hamuko glared.

"Er. Uh… Kinda awesome, that's what!" He said quickly. Hamuko gave him a dangerous grin.

"Jeez… you're some kind of crazy chick, aren't you?"

Hamuko gave a shrug of her shoulders in response as Yukari came running down the hall towards them.

"Seriously, I don't know how you can deal with him! Isn't he annoying?" Yukari asked as they both walked around the Paulownia Mall together. Earlier, when Yukari approached her, she asked for a favor, and it turned out that that favor was going shopping with her.

"Not really. You just gotta give him a chance, Takeba-san." Hamuko murmured thoughtfully.

"I guess… but he practically annoys me to death."

"If that was the case…" If Hamuko had sunglasses, she would have put them on already. Instead she gave a smug look at the brunette. "…Then you'd already be dead."

_'YEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!'_

"…" Yukari stopped and looked at her. "Oh god, is that a phrase from Hokuto no Ken?"

Admittedly, Hamuko hadn't expected Yukari to know what that phrase was, since she hardly seemed like a closet Otaku. Hamuko gave her a coy smile before replying with a whimsical tone. "I like watching Anime in my spare time, okay? Sue me."

* * *

As both walked home together, Yukari began talking about things to eat, which Hamuko surmised that she was getting hungry.

"You know, our dorm used to have a Dorm Mother." She began to say, looking slightly wistful. "You know, just someone who would do stuff like cooking, but now it's just us students. It'd be great having someone like that around to do that kind of stuff for us, don't you think?"

"Yeah, you're right." Hamuko nodded. "Also, I could've guessed. The Kitchen's barely in stock of stuff."

"Yeah… wow, talking about it makes me all depressed." The brunette sighed. "I can't remember the last time I had a home cooked meal… It's like, eating take out or convenience store food every other day."

"Why don't you cook for yourself?" Hamuko asked.

"Well, cooking's not really my thing- not that I'm a bad cook or anything. For that matter, it isn't Mitsuru-sempai's because she's… you know." She shrugged. "Akihiko-sempai doesn't really look like the type either."

"…Hmm." Hamuko hummed. "Then how about one of these days I cook for you?"

"Seriously?" Yukari gave her a surprised look.

"Mhm. I may not be the best chef, but I can cook a thing or two."

"How'd you learn how to cook?" Yukari asked nonchalantly.

"Everything I know is self taught." Hamuko said proudly. "When I lived with my uncle, it turned out that he didn't really know how to cook, so we kept eating take out every day. Since I would always get home before he would, I would spend my time watching cooking shows while doing homework. Then one day, I told him I didn't want to eat convenience store food anymore, and cooked a meal for myself and him. Since then, it was always like that."

Yukari gave her a thoughtful look. "Seriously? How old were you when that happened?"

"I was ten. My uncle was… what, twenty or something?" Hamuko shrugged. "Trust me, when you want to eat something good, there's no other satisfaction knowing that you made it yourself. Though admittedly, the only thing I'm really good at making is sweets."

"I know how you feel…" Yukari giggled. "Sweets? I'd like to try some, if you ever make any."

"Sure thing!"

* * *

Hamuko was back in her room at the dorm, lying on her bed. Surprisingly, she felt rather tired from her shopping with Yukari. While they were walking earlier, they had a heated discussion about what kinds of sweets were the best. In the end, they had agreed on that all sweets were equally delicious. Especially cake.

Her room was dark, though having the lights off usually had that effect. She felt her eyes steadily closing from drowsiness, deeper and deeper she was lulled into sleep…

How she wished for things to last this way.


	6. Trigger of Instinct

A/n: Hello! Memiroa here. Thanks for your reviews guys, I really appreciate it.

Albiereo Imma: I love the name Hamuko too. :3 I've been wanting to do something like this for quite a while, and by a while I mean about a year ago. But of course, back then there wasn't an official Female Protagonist, and now that there is one, I'm not stopping this story for the Universe. Also, the update you wanted is here, and I hope I don't disappoint you.

Faroush: Maybe this chapter will give you a little more insight to just who he is.

* * *

**Would you be the same as I remembered you, or would you be different?**

**

* * *

**

A sudden tremble accompanied by a loud noise shook Hamuko awake. It was still dark outside, with the sky still a suffocating green color.

It was 'that time'.

Wonderingly, the auburn-haired girl shifted out of the covers and began dressing in her uniform, seeing as it was the only thing out and presentable in the night. She didn't bother to tie the ribbon as she walked to the door to investigate. At the same time, something smashed against it.

"WAKE UP!" Yukari's voice broke through the quiet of the night as the door swung open. "Sorry, but I'm coming in!"

It was Yukari, clearly terrified as she had been the other night. The gun and holster was clipped to her thigh, a red armband adorned her left arm, and she brandished a naginata wildly. Hamuko took a step back to give her room.

"What's going o-"

"Look, I don't have time to explain!" She snapped. "We have to get out of here, _now_!"

This time, Hamuko didn't argue. With a quick nod of her head, she began to follow Yukari when she stumbled as the dorm shook again. There was no way that was a natural earthquake.

What on earth was going on?

"Hurry, downstairs! We'll leave through the back door!" Yukari yelled. She turned to leave, before quickly swerving around. She held out the long shafted weapon to Hamuko. A naginata, if she recalled correctly. "…Take this, just in case."

With another nod, Hamuko quickly took the weapon. Both began running downstairs as the dorm continued to spasm violently between intervals.

* * *

"Over here!" She called, running over to the door in the back of the room. She stopped to catch her breath, but just then, her eyes widened.

"Y-Yes? I hear you!" Evidently, she was talking to someone. She listened quietly for a few moments before uttering a loud "WHAT?"

At that very moment, something slammed against the back door repeatedly, to the point where it threatened to bust down the thing completely. Fearfully, Yukari glanced at Hamuko and gulped.

"L-Let's go back!"

Hamuko and Yukari both fled to the upper levels of the dorm. As the reached the second floor, the sound of glass shattering broke out, and another slam and crash hinted at the door's apparent demise. Slithers from the floor below grew closer, as did the smashing and destruction.

"Oh god, they're downstairs!" She yelped. Grabbing Hamuko's arm, she pulled her closer to the stairs. "I-It's getting closer!" Yukari panicked. "We have to keep going!"

* * *

The two eventually reached a steel door. Shakily, Yukari input the password and pulled Hamuko through the door as it swung open. They went through the iron door to the open roof, and Yukari locked it behind defiantly. She leaned back against it and sighed in relief. "Alright, we should be safe now-"

As if to spite her, the building shook again. Hamuko, for the first in a long time, experienced terror.

A blue mask poked over the edge of the building, held by a pitch black hand. A massive hand, with a palm the size of a large brick, a cinderblock almost. The hand turned it left, then right, as if it was trying to distinguish its surroundings.

Then, the mask finally stopped at Hamuko.

It moved forward a few inches as if to get a better look at the auburn-haired girl, when another hand reached up to pull itself onto the roof. Many hands followed the same suit as it hefted itself over the side of the dorm. Hamuko's eyes widened in fright.

There wasn't even a body. It was a writhing mass of limbs, with a mask held aloft above it like a crown.

She was frozen.

Panicking, her thoughts began racing. It was just hands and arms. She could use the naginata slice them off, right? Unfortunately, as the damned monstrosity of arms cleared over the railing, she was proven wrong. It carried brightly shining swords, each bigger than her.

"O-Oh my god…" Hamuko gaped as she took a few involuntary steps back. The monster darted at them, brandishing all its swords that glimmered in the murky moonlight. "W-What _is_ that thing?"

"Those monsters…" Yukari finally spoke as she put herself between the monster and Hamuko. "We call them Shadows…" Yukari explained, standing up and drawing the gun.

If not for her fear, Hamuko would have questioned why Yukari had put it against her forehead.

She pulled the trigger, and there was a surge of light accompanied with the sound of shattering glass. Several pillars of wind shot up. It whipped around the pair furiously as Hamuko cringed, lifting her arms up to shield herself from the vicious winds.

Yukari on the other hand gasped. She was just as scared as she was, but nonetheless she pulled the trigger again. The monster- the _Shadow_ completely disregarded it- it lashed out and knocked her aside with a bare hand. She skidded away, leaving Hamuko in clear view.

"TAKEBA-SAN!" Hamuko screamed, but didn't move. The brunette was several feet away, struggling to get back to her feet. She was alive.

On the other hand, Hamuko was merely inches away from death, and she knew it. She was terrified. She took a step back, but the Shadow darted closer, and closer until it was only a few feet away… and stopped to raise its multitude of blades- all pointed at her.

Why did the monster attack Yukari with a bare hand when it has all those swords?

It didn't care about Yukari. The swords indicated it wanted to kill _her_.

Why?

Hamuko finally noticed Yukari's gun lying by her feet. Hesitantly, she picked it up, and stared. There was no magazine slot, so it couldn't be loaded. Her throat tightened nonetheless.

Why did Yukari put it to her head?

Suddenly, Hamuko's heart bashed against her rib cage. The sound of her heartbeat rung in her ears. Time seemed to slow itself as her senses tingled, picking up everything.

The strange boy from the other night appeared to her, and pointed his finger against his head He smiled gently with anticipation.

_**Go on...**_

The 'gun' was ice cold.

It was heavy in her hand.

Why had Yukari put the gun to her head, instead of firing it at the Shadow?

Hamuko winced at the thought. Her heart raced faster as the scene of her pulling the trigger flashed itself in her mind.

In an act of defiance, she stared into the expressionless mask of the Shadow as everything went dead quiet.

Blood was coursing through her veins; she hyperventilated constantly despite her attempts to calm down.

Beads of cold sweat were running down her face.

She shakily lifted the gun to her temple, and clutched at her chest.

It was getting hard to breath.

…

Life was flashing before her eyes. She could see scenes from her childhood, as she shut her eyes tightly and gasped.

Everything stopped.

The scene from the dream she had other night flashed in her mind clearly, despite her panic.

_"What's the game called?"_

_"Hm? There's really no specific name for it." Her uncle said calmly said as he took a deep breath. "Now, Hamu-chan, repeat after me…"_

His lips moved, but no sound came from them. All the same, the words formed themselves in her mind.

She was over taken by an eerie calm as she opened her eyes. As if in a trance, Hamuko's lips curled up into a sinister smile. Her eyes glowed a bloody crimson in the shadowed moonlight as she took a sharp breath.

"Per… so… _na_…"

She pulled the trigger without flinching.

* * *

The two figures from the other world watched expectantly, but only one of them smiled much to the other's disgust.

"And so… it finally begins." The former murmured in acknowledgment.

* * *

An ice cold bullet penetrated Hamuko's skull, and through the other side of her head shards of ethereal glass and haze spiraled around her. She didn't realize she was smiling, nor did she realize what the torrent of blue glass was forming in the air.

_**Thou art I… and I am Thou…**_

_**From the sea of thy Soul, I cometh…**_

_**I am Eurydice, Victim of Untimely End…**_

Hamuko's grin grew wider as Eurydice shrieked in rage at the Shadow. She found herself laughing quietly, only to grow louder and _louder_ and _**louder**_-

"Uhhgn?" Her skull rang intensely as she clutched her head and fell to her knees. She was plagued by a sickening feeling, and choked. It was like someone, _something_ was ripping her mind in two. Eurydice contorted and jerked violently as gloved hands tore through her head and ripped it off brutally as pieces flew through the air. Hamuko coughed blood as she clutched her head, screaming all the while.

Something was in front of her. Straining to fight the pain, she saw a gargantuan figure dressed in black and navy, with a cape of coffins floating behind it. Chains clattered as it clenched the sword in its hand.

Whatever it was, it roared inhumanely with rage and bloodlust as it lunged for the shadow.

It beat on the shadow like it was _nothing_. It tore its limbs one by one, practically ripping it asunder in a fit of unhindered brutality. The brute roared hungrily as it continued smashing and tearing of the shadow's limbs, until only a hand and mask was left in a mound of black ichor. It finally slashed its turquoise mask cleanly in two with its sword, sweeping the hand towards Yukari. Hamuko could hear the brunette blanch and gasp at the sight as the dismembered arm sailed in her direction and wriggled, still alive.

Hamuko didn't care though. She was too transfixed on the T-rex helmed Persona floating before her.

"…Thanatos." She muttered inaudibly as its roar echoed through the gloomy sky. With a blink of an eye, it reverted back to Eurydice, before disappearing altogether. She stared breathlessly at the full moon looming in the horizon, as she slowly came to her senses.

Despite the fact that her heart was still racing, Hamuko glanced at Yukari.

"Is it over…?" The brunette asked timidly, still sitting on the ground.

Tiredly, Hamuko glanced back at the direction where the large shadow had been. Before she could answer, she noticed two 'pieces' of the shadow were creeping closer to both girls, but it was quite clear that both were darting towards Yukari because she was easier prey. Apparently, she had noticed too. Trembling, the brunette skittered back while shouting, "N-No! Stay away from me!"

Hamuko took a quick breath as she snatched up the naginata she had dropped earlier. She put herself in front of Yukari defiantly, and glowered at the incoming shadows before assuming an improvised stance with the Naginata.

The first shadow leapt at her, but she quickly swung the naginata down against it, batting it in the air. The turquoise mask cracked underneath the force of the swing. At the same time, the second leapt at her. Quickly shifting her stance, she sliced through the black gunk and severed away one of its many arms.

But she had forgotten about the first. It quickly hammered its hands against her in a claw-like fashion, knocking the Naginata away and slamming her against the wall, causing her to cough out more blood. It tasted of dull iron, but moreover, it _hurt_. Furiously, Hamuko grit her teeth as she fired off the gun against her temple. "I summon you!"

Eurydice erupted from the shards and glass and dove towards the first shadow, promptly bashing its heart shaped instrument against the turquoise mask. It messily broke it two, causing black slime to splatter in all directions as the shadow itself dissipated into nothingness while Eurydice followed the same suit. Getting back to her feet, Hamuko hastily sprinted to her fallen weapon.

An abrupt noise caused Hamuko's neck to swerve to the side. The second shadow was jumping at her. Quickly, she opted to kicking the shadow away with a simple, but effective front kick. While the shadow was forced back from the impact, she picked up and stabbed the naginata into the mess of arms, grinding the dull blade against the splintering mask.

"_LOOK OUT_!"

A third she hadn't seen before smacked her away from the second, causing her to drop her naginata yet again. But she was stunned at the sight before her. The third was _eating _the already dying shadow. Howls of inhumane agony sounded through the air, making Hamuko sick to her stomach. Fear seized her, yet she pressed onward. With a scowl, Hamuko raised the gun to her temple once more, summoning Eurydice to strike the shadow away.

The second was gone now. Instead, the third had somehow transformed. Its mask was now a slant-eyed opera mask. Hungrily, it lurched and lunged towards the auburn-haired girl only to be struck down by Eurydice. Again, armed with the naginata, Hamuko followed up on the suit and stabbed through the shadow's mask, but it still wasn't enough.

"I've had _enough_ of you!" She snarled. The shadow hissed in response as Hamuko slammed the butt of the gun against the end of the naginata, giving it the final push it needed to shatter the shadow's mask.

It gurgled one last time before exploding into a black, disgusting pile of ichor. Hamuko grimaced, before dropping the naginata repulsively. She trembled violently. Turning towards Yukari, she noticed that the brunette was giving her the same look as the first time she had seen her. She was terrified, but Hamuko couldn't really blame her. With a frail smile, the auburn-haired girl collapsed against the cold, bloodstained concrete of the roof as the world grew a dim black, melting into the nothingness of unconsciousness.

* * *

Hamuko woke with a start, only to be greeted by a surreal amount of velvet blue, accompanied with occasional flashing lights. Confused and tired, she glanced wearily around the Velvet Room.

"It's so nice to see you again."

Lifting her head up, she saw Igor was sitting across from her, with his Cheshire-like grin etched upon his face. If Hamuko wasn't mistaken, she could hear a slight hint of eagerness in the old man's voice.

"You became unconscious after awakening to your 'power'." He explained serenely. "Usually, this happens to those who have just awakened for the first time. It is nothing to be concerned about, so relax…"

Hamuko, who was slightly more awake than before, groggily shifted into a more comfortable position as Igor continued to speak. "I see it was Eurydice that heeded your calling. How _fascinating_…" He added as an afterthought, but continued seamlessly. "That power is called a 'Persona'. In the simplest terms, it is a manifestation of your Psyche given physical form."

"…That sounds familiar. Per-so-na." She syllabicated absentmindedly before blinking with a look of realization. "Persona. That… that's the game my uncle played with me when I was a little girl…" Confused, Hamuko shook her head unsteadily before turning her gaze to Igor. "What exactly do you mean? Persona? My Psyche?"

Igor chuckled with an unsurprised look at Hamuko's revelation. "A touched memory, perhaps? No matter." Waving his hand dismissively, the old man closed his as he began to explain. "A Persona is a facet of your personality that surfaces as you react to external stimuli… You can think of it as a mask that protects you as you brave many hardships."

"Makes sense. What is that, Freud?" Hamuko murmured, tilting her head slightly. "A Persona... that's what 'Eurydice' is?"

"Jung, to be more precise, my dear, and yes. It was she who heeded your calling during your time of need." Igor replied informatively. "When you use your Persona ability, you must channel your inner strength. The ability evolves as you forge Social Links- your emotional bonds with others." The old man's grin grew ever wider as Hamuko gave him a pressing look. "The stronger your Social Links, the more powerful your ability to summon Personae becomes. As of the moment, your power is still weak."

After taking all of that into account, Hamuko nodded finally with a slight smile. "So that explains why I couldn't summon Thanatos, doesn't it? Weak, am I?" She asked with a resigned tone.

"For the moment, perhaps you are… Only time will tell." Igor nodded ever so slightly before opening his eyes again. "Please remember that, my dear."

From across the room, Hamuko gave the old man a thumbs up.

"Now then…" Igor's fingertips fluttered as the Velvet room sped up considerably. He nodded quietly as he continued to speak. "Time marches on in your world. I shouldn't keep you here any longer. Next time… you will come here of your own accord."

The flashes of light sped up, blinding Hamuko's vision with a brilliant white. Somberly, as her mind began to cloud, she closed her eyes as Igor's last words rang out.

"Until next time… farewell."

* * *

**Though… just thinking about it won't change anything.**

**

* * *

**

When the white faded away, Hamuko found her eyes opening unsteadily. Blinking several times to adjust her sight, she groggily turned to the left to see an astounding view of Tatsumi Port Island. To her numb surprise, Yukari Takeba was sitting there, gazing out the window. It took her a few moments, but the brunette finally realized that she was awake.

"You're awake…!" She said in a hushed voice, sighing with relief a moment after. Yukari's body tensed before continuing, though it was apparent she was trying her best not to show it. Was she worried? "Um… how are you feeling?"

Sitting up, Hamuko realized that she was in a hospital. As she pushed away the blankets, she rubbed her shoulder stiffly while flashing an apologetic smile to the brunette. "…I've had better days. Have you been here long?"

"Oh no, not really…" Yukari's voice trailed off as she sighed again. This time, she had small smile on her face. "But really… Thank goodness you finally came to. I was so worried about you." She said sincerely.

With a puzzled expression, Hamuko frowned slightly. "Eh? Why?"

"You've been asleep for a week, sleepyhead." Yukari chided, as her posture relaxed. "The doctor couldn't find anything wrong with you. He said that you were just exhausted…"

"Well, I say the doctor got the diagnosis right." Hamuko mused languidly. Yukari laughed slightly before looking downward. Worried, the auburn-haired girl gave her a questioning look. "Is something wrong?"

"Um…" She began to say, trying to find the words. Yukari's head hung down in shame. "…I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize." Hamuko murmured with a reproachful tone.

"No, I do." Yukari shook her head. "You protected me… Even though _I _was supposed to protect _you_. But even so… I couldn't do anything." Sighing, Yukari gazed into Hamuko's eyes and began speaking with clear admiration. "Though… your power. It was amazing… and you didn't even think twice before putting yourself in front of those Shadows! The way you fought… was that really the first time you've ever done that?"

"Speaking of which," Hamuko interrupted. "What are they? You call them 'Shadows'?"

"They're what we're fighting against." Yukari nodded. "And that power you used to defeat them, it's called-"

"Persona." Hamuko finished for her. Yukari nodded again.

"You would know, wouldn't you? You said that right before you summoned… that thing." She shuddered slightly before continuing. "How'd you know how to summon anyway?"

"Hmm." Hamuko cocked her head thoughtfully. "I don't know? It was kind of like one of those moments where your body moves on its own." Hamuko shrugged. "Instinct, maybe?"

"Who knows." Yukari murmured softly, taking a moment to stand up from her seat. "We'll explain everything later. And… I'm sorry for not telling you before. I… I wanted to tell you…" She began to say, looking slightly discouraged. "…I'm sorta like you."

"What do you mean?"

"Well… My dad died in an accident when I was little… and my mom and I aren't exactly on speaking terms. You're all alone too, right?" She asked quietly, as she gazed out towards the cityscape in the distance.

"…Yeah." Hamuko nodded solemnly.

"To be honest, I already know about your past… but it didn't seem fair, so I wanted you to know about mine…" She took a deep breath; her eyes glazed over as she began to speak again. A pained look was slowly making its way to Yukari's face as she spoke. "It was back in '99… There was a big explosion in the area. My dad supposedly died in the blast, but nobody really knows what happened… He was working in a lab run by the Kirijo Group."

Heaving a sigh, Yukari turned towards Hamuko. "I'm hoping that if I stick around long enough, I'll find something out. That's why I'm going to Gekkoukan High, and why I was there when this happened to you." She turned away again, looking more dejected than before. "Of course, I panicked and I wasn't much help… It was my first time fighting them too. I'm sorry…" This time, the brunette looked much more frustrated. She was clenching her fists tightly to her sides as she continued on. "If I hadn't been such a coward, you wouldn't have had to go through any of this…"

"It's not your fault." Hamuko said kindly, with a slight smile. "I mean, I was scared too. You shouldn't blame yourself, Yukari-san."

Yukari again relaxed herself, and smiled apologetically at the auburn-haired girl. "Thanks… but still…" With a sigh, she looked downward and absentmindedly began playing with a loose thread from her skirt. Abruptly, she stopped and met Hamuko's gaze with an exasperated look.

"Listen to me; I'm making myself sound like a victim when you're the one who risked your life…! Not only that, but I've been telling you all of this since the minute you woke up." She paused, trying to find the correct words. "While I was waiting, I thought to myself, 'I've been hiding so many things from her… as soon as she wakes up, I'll tell her the truth.'"

"And thank you for doing so." Hamuko grinned, causing Yukari to perk up a little. With a small laugh, the brunette smiled contently. "And don't worry about it either, Yukari-san. We're both girls, and I can understand what you're going through."

"R-Really?" Apparently, she was surprised with Hamuko's display of compassion. Hamuko decided to drive the nail home. It wouldn't be bad to have a friend, would it?

"Really." Hamuko's hair bounced as she nodded thoughtfully. Now that Hamuko had gotten to know her, she figured that the pretty brunette wasn't as bad as she first thought. With a smile, she murmured brightly, "What are friends for?"

"Friends?" Again, that caught Yukari off guard. After a moment, she smiled brightly in response. "Thanks for listening… to be honest, I've been wanting to share that story with someone for a long time." She admitted.

"Hehe. No problem." Hamuko replied lightheartedly.

"Thanks again. Oh, and before I get going, I guess I should explain that we called your uncle about you getting admitted into the hospital."

"Which one?" Hamuko asked with a questioning look.

"Umm… he had a funny name. Nao-something? I didn't personally call him, Mitsuru-sempai did." Yukari scratched her head with a slight frown. "Anyway, he sounded really worried about you, so you should call him when you up to it. Until then, you should get some rest, okay?"

"All right."

"I'll let the others know that you've woken up." She informed as she began walking towards the door. Unexpectedly, Yukari turned around just as she reached the door, and smiled. "I know this is kind of late, but you don't need to be formal around me or anything. Us second-year girls gotta stick up for each other after all." Yukari's face took a delicate shade of pink as she waved her hand hastily while uttering a goodbye.

Hamuko on the other hand felt content, albeit a bit tired. Yawning, she noticed her MP3 player and headphones were lying innocently by her bedside. Eagerly, she clipped the earphones over her ears and began listening avidly. She would have to thank Yukari later.


	7. Invitation

**You have no idea.**

* * *

Hamuko was released from the hospital quite a while after yesterday's talk with Yukari, due to last minute check ups from the doctor. As it turned out, she ran into Mitsuru and Akihiko on the way out, just as they were going their way in. She decided to stick around and wait for Akihiko to finish his appointment while in the meantime Mitsuru told her why he was going to the hospital in the first place. Despite the pain wasn't hers, she winced when she found out.

"Two fractured ribs and a broken arm, huh?" Hamuko mused to herself while she walked closer to the school. _The shadows must've done it_, she thought. Hamuko felt lucky, considering that she had escaped the battle with an entire week's worth of rest and a sore shoulder. The said shoulder was what she had landed on during her own skirmish with the shadows, and even still it hurt. While she walked, she rubbed it gingerly in an attempt to ease the dull ache.

"Yo!" Before she could turn around, Junpei's hand unexpectedly slapped her sore shoulder. Cringing in pain, Hamuko turned around with teary eyes, and glared. "Haven't seen you around in a whi… whoa." Junpei raised an eyebrow with obvious confusion. "What's with THAT look?"

Smiling a dangerously, Hamuko gave the cap-wearing teenager a sharp jab to his side with her elbow. Apparently, she had hit him harder than expected, for he had ended up yelping and dropping his school bag from the pain. He was probably over exaggerating for all she knew.

"Hey, hey! What the hell was _that_ for?" He yelled as he rubbed his side tentatively. With a slight scowl, Hamuko picked up his bag and handed it to him with something along the lines of a callous expression.

"Payback." She stated simply.

"For just _what_, might I ask?" Junpei asked exasperatedly. He grudgingly took his bag out of Hamuko's waiting hand.

"Because you hit me. That, and you really shouldn't let Karma build up."

"What, it didn't hurt THAT much, did it? Karma's a load of crap anyway. Don't tell me you believe in all those freaky voodoo things too." Junpei retorted sullenly, before pausing to catch up with Hamuko, who was walking at a rapid pace. "But it didn't hurt, right?"

She paused briefly to find the correct analogy, and gave him an informative look as she began to speak. "You know when one of your legs fall asleep, and you feel that weird numb and tingly feeling that you dislike so much that you stamp your foot against the ground to make it wake up, despite how much it throbs and hurts?"

He understood that much. "What about it?"

Hamuko resumed her normal pace, and glanced at the cap-wearing boy. "That's how my shoulder felt, and you slapping it didn't help."

"Ouch." He cringed slightly. "Sorry 'bout that."

"It's okay." Hamuko chirped as her momentary bout of annoyance left her.

"Though, to be honest, seeing you make that face was worth it." Junpei grinned goofily much to Hamuko's dismay. "Oh come on, don't be like that. You looked so friggin' moe back there that it was hilarious."

"I don't know if I should take that as an insult or a compliment. Do I look like I'm from an anime?" Hamuko replied irksomely.

It was if a switch was flipped. Jokingly and dramatically, Junpei held a finger in front of her face. "Let's see, overly foreign looking appearance? Weird Hair color? Check. Stereotypical Transfer Student that most of the dudes are swooning over? Check. Moe tendencies? Check!" Junpei said smugly. "Do I have to keep going?"

"Sure, sure. And while we're at it, we can pretend we're video game characters going to school. If you haven't noticed, Mitsuru-sempai and Akihiko-sempai have 'funny' hair colors too." Hamuko replied off handedly. So Junpei was a closet otaku? Not that she wouldn't have guessed.

"Well, Mitsuru-sempai probably dyes it or something and Akihiko-sempai uses bleach. I mean, there's no natural way to have hair in that color, right? And how do you know Akihiko-sempai? You haven't been at school for very long." Junpei asked pointedly, to which Hamuko gave a shoddy shrug of her shoulders.

"I ran into him once."

"Makes sense." He nodded absentmindedly. Nonetheless, Junpei switched over to a new topic. "…Games, huh? Heh, I think I can picture it now: the main character walking to school with a hot babe. Or something. Or is that the other way around in this situation? What kind of game would that be? A Galge? Or would it be an Otome in your case?" He grimaced. "Talk about boring. I'm more of an RPG kind of guy! Action all the way!"

With that reaction, she mentally tallied video games as something he really liked, but something he couldn't stand was thinking through scenarios. That IS what Galge were about after all…"I could've figured that." She laughed, much to Junpei's delight.

"Anyway! I got something to tell ya."

"Hmm? What is it?" Hamuko asked curiously. Junpei rubbed his nose with a complacent look, eager to say whatever information he held for her, but instead he stopped himself. His thoughts on the matter easily bled though his face, and in the end, he smiled somewhat apologetically.

"Well… Actually, never mind. You'll find out sooner or later." He smirked. "'Sides, I'm not supposed to tell anyone anyway. But let me tell you this- I can't _WAIT _to see Yuka-tan's face when she finds out-!"

"Well sheesh, looks like someone's full of energy today." Speak of the devil. As Hamuko looked away from Junpei, she realized that Yukari had been standing nearby the whole time. She was smiling devilishly like proverbial the cat who caught the canary, or in this case, catching Junpei talking behind her back so to speak. "I could hear you all the way from here, you know… so you were saying something about me?"

"N, nope! Nothing at all." Junpei stuttered quickly. "Anyway, I got some stuff to take care of. Later!"

Without a second to spare, Junpei sprinted through the school gates and into the school, much to Hamuko's amusement. To Yukari, not so much. With an annoyed look, she turned towards Hamuko and scowled. "Jeez, what's up with him now? It's way too early in the morning for his stupid antics."

"Who knows?" Hamuko hummed inattentively. Yukari rolled her eyes heavenward.

"Well, now that that's over…" Yukari took a breath, composing herself with a bright smile. "Are you feeling better… Hamuko?"

The auburn-haired girl's ponytail bounced up and down while she nodded. She was glad that Yukari left out the honorific. "Just peachy. My shoulder's still a bit numb though." She murmured as she unconsciously rubbed it again. "It's nothing to worry about though… Oh! Thanks for bringing me my MP3 player."

"No problem, but don't push yourself, all right? You did just get out of the hospital, y'know." She nodded thoughtfully. "Anyway, sorry for hitting you with this first thing in the morning, but Ikutsuki-san wants to talk to you today. Come to the fourth floor of the dorm after school, okay? Don't forget!"

"All righty."

* * *

There was a very pregnant pause.

She had arrived minutes ago directly after school, and still Ikutsuki was staring at her, much to her growing discomfort. Hamuko was seated on a small plush seat, next to Yukari. Ikutsuki sat on the opposite side, with Mitsuru seated at his left and Akihiko to his right, and they were all staring at her, as if she were some kind of zoo attraction.

"So," She said in an noncommittal fashion, breaking the awkward tension. "Can I ask why I'm here?"

"…I asked for you because I needed to talk to you. But first off, I'm glad you're okay. I wasn't sure what I'd do if anything had happened to you." Ikutsuki said finally, peering through his glances with what was an assumingly serious look. How creepy. "But first, I believe I mentioned him earlier, but this is Akihiko Sanada."

"Hey again." The white-haired boy gave her a nonchalant look as he glanced at her direction.

"Hello, Sanada-sempai." She said awkwardly, but he couldn't seem to care less.

"So you've met before? That's save time then." Ikutsuki pushed his glasses up, and leaned forward over the coffee table. "Would you believe me if I said that a day consists of more than twenty four hours?"

She gave him a sarcastic look. "No."

Apparently, her sarcasm didn't seem to sink through the seriousness of the mood. Mitsuru spoke up next. "Do you remember the night you came here? You had to have noticed the signs…" Hamuko knew what was coming next. "The streetlights went out... Nothing was working... There were coffins everywhere... Didn't it feel like you were in a different time...? That's the Dark Hour-a time period hidden between one day and the next."

So that explained it. Somewhat. With a perplexed look, she mumbled, "Hidden?"

"I guess it's more like something people aren't aware of. But, the Dark Hour does exist. It occurs each night, at midnight." It made sense. So the hellish nightmare she had experienced for the last ten years of her life was something normal people weren't aware of. Normal. If anyone were normal here, it would've had to been Junpei. Normal, but stupid. "It'll happen tonight, and every night to come." He said rather cryptically. As if she didn't know that already.

"Normal people don't realize it, since they're all sleeping inside their coffins." Again, something she already knew. "But, that's not what makes the Dark Hour so interesting." Akihiko's face took on a more excitable look as he smirked. "You saw those creatures. We call them-"

"-Shadows," She finished for him, as she pictured the slimy mess of limbs and black gunk. She fought off a grimace, and continued. "Yukari already told me about them."

"She did?" Akihiko said with a surprised look. Nonetheless, he disregarded it and continued to speak. "Anyway, shadows appear only during the Dark Hour, and attack anyone who isn't in a coffin." If that was the case, why had she never seen one until now? "It's our job to defeat them… sounds exciting, huh?"

"Akihiko!" Mitsuru shouted, allowing her hair to whip up indignantly as she stood up, and glowered at the silver-haired teen. "Why are you always like that? You just got hurt the other day!" Worry and concern flashed in her eyes, and slight irritation tugged at the corner of her lip.

"Now, now," Ikutsuki was quick to intervene. With a light smile, he attempted to dissolve the abrupt tension. "He does his work well." Crossly, Mitsuru sat back down in her seat and folded her arms. Hamuko blinked. Even Mitsuru couldn't go against what Ikutsuki said…

Ikutsuki then looked back at Hamuko with a staid look, completely different from his previous expression. "Long story short… We're the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad- S.E.E.S. for short. On paper, we're classified as a school club. But in reality, this group is dedicated to defeating the shadows. Mitsuru is the leader; I'm the club advisor."

Mitsuru as the leader? She expected as much, but she couldn't help but be impressed. She _knew_ that there was something strange with this dorm.

"A shadow feeds on the mind of its prey; the victim becomes a living corpse." Mitsuru said as she picked up where Ikutsuki had left off. That, Hamuko didn't know. "They're responsible for most of the incidents on the news, if not all of them."

"How do you fight them then?" She asked, slightly hoping that there was a cleaner way to not get her hands stained in foul slime.

"Although rare, there are those who can function in the Dark Hour. Some may even awaken to a power that enables them to fight Shadows."

"Persona." Hamuko slipped, covering her mouth a moment later. Ikutsuki merely nodded.

"That's right- it's the power that you used the other night." And how did he know that? "Shadows can only be defeated by Persona Users, which means it's all up to you guys."

"I see." Hamuko understood. Long story short, S.E.E.S was trying to recruit her.

"I'm glad you're quick to understand." He nodded approvingly.

Immediately, as if on cue, Mitsuru lifted a sleek metal briefcase from beneath the table and opened it, revealing the familiar yet outlandish figure of a gun. A similar gun to the one she had used all those nights ago lay nestled on dark gray foam next to a bright red armband that was emblazoned with 'S.E.E.S.'. Mitsuru gave her a piercing look. "In other words… we want you to join us. As you can see, we've prepared an evoker for you."

Hamuko gave a flippant look. "But why?"

"We'd like for you to lend us your strength." Mitsuru said curtly.

"Besides, your power was amazing." Akihiko jumped in. "You saw how huge that thing was, but your Persona ripped it into shreds like it was nothing!"

Hamuko froze. How would he know that? Did Yukari tell them? "How…?"

"Live camera feed." Mitsuru answered icily, gesturing to the large machine to the side of the room. "There are cameras wired all over the dorm for surveillance during the Dark Hour just in case in the even the dorm gets attacked. Which is how we saw your battle with the shadows on the roof."

She gave them all incredulous looks and uttered, "…And you didn't even think about helping?"

"Well…" Mitsuru began to say, but Hamuko cut her off.

"Yukari could've died back there- no, we _both_ could have died back there, and none of you thought about helping?" Her voice rose as she balled her hands into fists. Her face was flushed with obvious indignation. "What if I wasn't able to summon my persona in time? What if I had collapsed after Thanatos had ripped whatever the hell that thing was into pieces? What if I wasn't able to kill those shadows!" Hamuko clicked her tongue in disgust.

"The reason for that is solely my fault." Ikutsuki answered immediately. "Mitsuru and Akihiko would have made it to the scene immediately if I hadn't stopped them."

Her eyes narrowed as they fell onto Ikutsuki. "Why _did_ you stop them?"

"Once I saw you pick up Yukari's evoker, I assumed it would be the best time to see your potential." He explained with an apologetic look. "But one thing concerns me. How exactly did you know what to do? Did you do it because you saw Yukari do it priorly? How did you know that she wasn't planning to commit suicide?"

"…Because Yukari isn't that type of person." Numbly, Hamuko shook her head, before looking awkwardly to the side to avoid Yukari's gaze.

"So how did you know?" Ikutsuki pressed.

"…The words popped into my head?" She answered helplessly with a shrug, earning a flippant looks from the others. It was true though. The boy in striped pajamas showed her what she needed to do, but… who would believe her if she told them that? It wasn't just that either. Shaking her head, Hamuko stood up and glanced to everyone in the room. "Look, this is really sudden," Too sudden, too much to her discomfort. How _did_ she know those words? "Just… give me a day or two to think things over." She said with a somber finality.

"It's understandable." Ikutsuki nodded. Yukari had a look of protest on her face, as Mitsuru's eyebrows knitted together with uncertain worry. Akihiko, seemed thoughtful if nothing else. With a slight bow of her head, Hamuko left the conference room with a bitter tension, and shut the door behind her. With an aggravated look, she looked downward and clenched her fists as she whipped out her cell phone from her skirt pocket.

Her uncle. He probably knew something. Quickly, she dial his number while she ran back downstairs to the privacy of her room before realizing the extent of what Mitsuru had told her earlier.

There were cameras all over the dorm. For all she knew, there could be one in her room too. This predicament was nerve wracking and stress-inducing, but what could she do? She retreated into her room, and hit [Call].

After what seemed to be an eternity, he finally picked up. "Hello? Naoya Toudou speaking."

"Uncle?" She began to say, recomposing herself to hide her nervous apprehension. "It's me, Hamuko. Sorry for not calling you earlier."

"I was wondering when you'd call." He said in mock anger. Despite the worry he expressed through the phone, Hamuko couldn't help but smile. "I was about to call you myself, considering how you were in the hospital. How did you manage to get yourself in there anyway? You're not involved with anything bad, are you?"

"Oh! No, no. Not at all." She hated lying through her teeth, but she had to make it seem like she was just checking with her uncle. "It was just out of exhaustion, that's all."

"That's exactly what that young lady told me a week ago. Kirijo, was it?" He remarked, before taking a more serious tone. "But that's beside the point. What did you do to get yourself _that_ exhausted, Hamuko?"

"I didn't get proper rest." She said quickly, perhaps too quickly. "But I'm doing okay now." She added on a light note.

"I take it you're done adjusting, then?" He asked with an amused tone.

"I guess." She shrugged, as she collapsed over the side of her bed. Biting her lip, she closed her eyes and let out a resigned sigh. "Sorry for calling you so late."

"It's no problem at all." Her uncle replied good naturedly. "If there's anything you need, don't hesitate to ask, all right?"

"…Okay. Good night, Uncle."

Hamuko wanted to say more, but couldn't. Instead, she closed the her cellphone with a somber click, and changed out of her uniform. She then quickly turned off the lights and dove under the blankets, curling up into a ball as her brows furrowed together with worry. It all seemed so surreal, like something out of a fantasy novel. Persona, Shadows, the Dark Hour… what was she to do? She couldn't ignore it, could she? If she did ignore it, what would happen?

_I accept the full responsibility of my actions._

If she ignored it, everything that would happen after would be her fault in an extreme way of thinking. The danger of the Dark Hour was great- she knew that. She had experienced it for years now, and the shadows she had encountered a week before only enforced the thought in her mind. She mulled it through her mind.

_'Only those with the potential can awaken during the Dark Hour.' _She didn't want to get hurt. Yet despite this, would she turn away people who were distinctly asking for her help?

The auburn-haired girl let out a deep sigh and relaxed, drifting off into restless slumber.

* * *

A squeak of her mattress woke Hamuko up. As she sleepily shrugged off the blankets and sat up, her red eyes met the two-toned cerulean eyes of the boy in striped pajamas.

"Hi," He said a little too cheerfully with a slight wave of his hand. "How are you?"

She jumped slightly, now fully awake. Her mouth opened to shout, but she realized that all the others would wake if she did. "H-How did you get in here?" She stuttered awkwardly, much to the boy's amusement.

"I'm always with you." He answered obligingly.

"Really." She asked flatly. "Then why don't I ever see you during the daytime?"

"Because I thought you'd like some privacy, that's all." He said good naturedly.

"Well…" Of all the people she had encountered, only the creepy little kid had the decency to give her that? "Thank you."

"It's fine. I think you deserve that much. There's little room for someone like me in your personal life, but I don't mind." Hamuko gawked at the boy's answer, causing him to laugh with an innocent chuckle before taking a more somber expression. "Soon, the end will come. I remembered, so I thought that I should tell you."

The End? What? "…Thanks."

"'Thanks'?" The boy gave her a puzzled look. "Normally, you wouldn't thank a person for telling you that kind of thing, right?"

"At least you told it to me straight up," Hamuko said pointedly, before rolling her eyes. "Unlike SOME people here."

"Oh yes." He nodded. "Speaking of them, what will you do? They need you, you know."

"And how would you know that?" She gave him a suspicious look before waving her hand dismissively. "Oh right, you're always with me." With a pleased nod, the boy beckoned for her to continue. "…I was thinking about it," She murmured quietly. "Considering what they're trying to go against, I think they'd need all the help they can get."

"Yes. They're interested in you and your power," He replied softly. "And an unusual power it is."

"Persona, right?" She asked.

"Yes and no. Yours is different from theirs." The boy shook his head, and raise his arms to elaborate. "It's a power that takes many forms, but is bound by none… It may prove to be your salvation, depending on where you end up." Before she could ask another question, the boy continued to speak. "Do you remember when we first met?"

"I was thinking about it earlier, to be honest." She admitted. He simply gave an acknowledging nod of his head.

"I expect you to honor your commitment." He said, as he hopped off the side of her bed and flashing a small, lonely smile. Something about it made her sad at the core, yet filled her with a warm nostalgia. "I'll be watching you, even if you forget about me…"

He began walking towards the door, but Hamuko's eyes never left him. Why would she forget him? No, rather, why would he think that?

"Wait."

"What is it?" The boy stopped, and turned around with a bemused look. His hand was already on the doorknob, waiting.

"You're welcome to come back anytime, if you'd like."

That apparently caught him off guard.

She smiled, and repeated with a clear voice, "Feel free to come back anytime, okay?"

"…Thank you." He said with a genuine smile, much like his previous one. "Okay then…" He said, as he turned the door knob and exited through the door with a small wave. "See you later."

"Good night." She called after him quietly as the door shut as she tugged her blankets and laid back down in her bed. She yawned sleepily, nuzzling her head into the pillows. As she drifted into slumber, a thought went through her mind.

_He smiles like Minato._

* * *

A/n: No. This story isn't dead. But, I must admit my writing ability is becoming heavily impaired, so I hope you'll excuse that. Anyhow, hopefully I'll update more often now.


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